The End of Life's Journey

Dearest K,

I'm really sorry to hear about your friend.  That must be extremely hard to see - I can only relate in the way I felt when I saw my grandfather in his weakened state earlier this year after he had his first stroke.  He used to be such a strong man - someone who we could rely on to take care of us.  But this year, I had to witness him being spoon-fed by his own daughter as he sat in a wheelchair.  And then two months ago, all that was left of him was ashes in a golden urn.

This sounds weird, but I started to contemplate my own mortality when I first started college.  I even wrote an essay on it - I will share with you.

A couple days ago I started watching the documentary "The Buddha"...and Siddhartha was faced with the same questions we have when we are faced with the prospect of the end of our own life journey.  All of us, regardless of religious affiliation, have a lot to learn from Siddhartha's life story.

We have a lot of goals and ambitions for what we would consider a happy, successful, meaningful life... it may differ from person to person.

In my opinion, we should just enjoy it...every last bit of it...while it lasts.

Take risks, grab every opportunity, live without regret.
Be happy, make others happy.
See as much of the world as you can.

At my grandfather's funeral, we mourned his loss.  But we celebrated the life of a wonderful man who had touched our lives.  We shared funny stories, happy memories.

And I thought... the sunset is just as beautiful as the sunrise.