Life and Death

I received a call yesterday telling me someone I worked with died unexpectedly. Although we got along well, and I tried to encourage him and listen to him, this man was a troubled soul, marked with horrible experiences throughout his life. He was unable to move past them, keeping the wounds fresh by focusing on them and blaming those who wronged him every chance he got. He tormented himself constantly by focusing on the past, which kept him locked into a pattern of self-loathing, hurt, regret, and hate. I hope he was able to finally let go of all that before he transitioned.

All of us has some sort of experience with death, as it is an unescapable part of the cycle. One day, it will be our turn to go beyond the veil. We never know how long we have left to live, so it is important to celebrate our lives and live life to the fullest. All we have is now, this moment, so it is imperative to take the opportunity to work through all the negative, unpleasant experiences and focus on the joyous ones, with gratitude and forgiveness, as best we can.

“The universal is present in the individual. Just so, liberation comes from recognizing the subtle in the gross, the unity in diversity, the similarity in differences, the truth in untruth, the light in darkness, the life in death. This is real liberation.”

Nityananda

This process will take as long as it takes. Forgiveness usually does not happen immediately, but just the simple desire to want to forgive (ourselves and others) is a huge step in the right direction of letting go of regrets and negativity.

Bronnie Ware, the author of “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying”, lists the following as the regrets most people had on their deathbed:

• I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me
• I wish I hadn’t worked so hard
• I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings
• I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends
• I wish that I had let myself be happier

Don’t wait until it’s too late; we must start letting ourselves be happy now and focus on what is right and good in our lives, so that when transition occurs, we move on to the next life without regrets and bitterness.

“Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.”

Will Rogers