Death

I want to write for a moment about the phrase "deserving to die."

No. This is not (necessarily) a game related post.

One hears this phrase bandied around every so often: "So-and-so deserves to die." OR "So-and-so DIDN'T deserve to die." That the phrase happens so much in our society...or at all...says something about how WE (as a society) feel about death.

Pause that for a moment. To recycle a line from one of my favorite, Oscar-winning films:

"Deserve's got nothing to do with it."

I've mentioned this many times in many other posts, but I'll reiterate it again for the cheap seats: we are all going to die. I'm going to die. You're going to die. Our families and friends are going to die. Our loved ones, Our children. Our grandchildren. It's not a question of IF...it's a question of WHEN. Part of being human is being mortal...we don't last forever. Current science pins maximum longevity (with optimal health, nutrition, clean-living, etc.) at roughly 120 years. Most people will happily celebrate 100 (or 90!) so long as they're still ambulatory. The takeaway, however, is that our time here is FINITE. We end. All of us.

And we all have that knowledge...at least, anyone reading this blog should already know and understand that. This is not a secret of our existence. But whether or not one wants to face this truth...well, I'll not judge (too much).

We all die. Some of us live long enough to accomplish something we're proud of...leaving a legacy of sorts. This could be as "simple" as procreation, or it might be monumental institutions that will last for generations after we've shuffled off our mortal coil. Again, once we've passed away, such thing will cease to matter to us. We'll be gone...on to the next adventure (or next plane of existence or next incarnation or whatever happens "after"). 

So...what? So what, JB? It's "okay" to die?

It's not a question of whether or not it's "okay." Death is inevitable. Mortality is a part of the human experience. For good reason (in my opinion): there comes a time when it is time for the soul to rest from its endeavors during this existence...death is a welcome respite for the work (often painful work) of 'living.'

The sad part of death is mainly for those that are left behind.

[I say "mainly" out of the idea that a dying person may be resistant to death because they feel they have "more to do" before passing on...but evidence is that the world continues without us JUST FINE...this idea that we (perhaps) care upon passing is (at best) romantic or whimsical thinking]

We each have a part, a role to play in this rich tapestry of life in which we are all (while living) participating. When we die, our thread comes to an end...and that's O.K....but there are other strands that we have touched that might (and DO) continue after we're gone. For a while at least. And that, too, is a kind of legacy.

Why do I bring all this up? Why am I writing about it?

Recently a man was murdered in this country, my country (the U.S.A.). Sadly, unfortunately, this is not an unusual occurrence. Nearly 17,000 people were murdered in 2024. People with dreams, with plans, with ambitions. People with families that were left behind. People of all colors and ethnicities and economic spheres and politics. People who could have lived LONGER...maybe a LOT longer...if they had not been "cut down" by a murderous assassin.

This man that was murdered...I'd never heard of him (or if I had, I'd paid no mind and/or forgotten about him). But apparently he was famous. And controversial: much beloved by some, despised and hated by others. Having now learned something of him and heard his viewpoints on a number of subjects, I hold my own opinions, which I choose not to share at this time.

For this man to die, murdered, is not a good thing. It is not good for his family, it is not good for the people who loved him, it is not good for the people who stood against what he stood for. It wasn't even good for the person who murdered him and set out to (and succeeded in accomplishing) his murder. I say this with complete conviction: it is not good for the soul of a murderer to commit murder. I've known people who have committed murder (in war time) and I've seen the deep, deep scars it creates in their core.

In their core. But...that's something I could discuss at length and I don't want to digress from my current subject.

This controversial man was murdered, and there is nothing "good" about that. But his murder means nothing in terms of whether or not his death was "deserved." Deserve has nothing to do with it. Wherever his soul is now, it is evaluating its time on this earthly plane (in that particular earthly form) and considering "How did I live my life? What did I do for others while I was living?" For his own children he certainly did a LOT, bringing them into this world...something for which they should be eternally grateful. I am certain they will miss him immensely and, as a father (and son) myself, I empathize and feel for the tragedy of their loss. How terribly, terribly sad and frustrating their childhood will be without their father. 

I will say again: there is nothing good about a person's murder. No matter how hateful a person may be (or may be judged to be). With life, there is always hope...hope for change, hope for action, hope for making the world a better place. Even if I do horrible, horrible deeds. I can decide to change my ways and make a positive difference in the world...positive difference which might not "atone" for my past misdeeds, BUT IS STILL MAKING A POSITIVE CONTRIBUTION TO THE LIVES OF PEOPLE. 

Do people understand that? You might have been a piece of shit...for years!...but if you go out tomorrow and start helping people, being compassionate, working for the good of your fellows rather than the enrichment of your ego or pocketbook THAN YOU ARE MAKING A SOLID, POSITIVE IMPACT IN THE PRESENT. And, like it or not, we live in the present. And what we do in the present has an effect on what happens in the future. It doesn't make the past 'go away' but, to date, we haven't found the way to change the past. Best thing to do with it is to LEARN from it.

"Deserved to die." "Didn't deserve to die." F*** all that noise...both sides. WE ALL DIE. With the possible exception of Jesus Christ (and that's a faith question) no one has ever staved off death completely. The murdered would have died eventually, regardless of whether or not they were pissing off folks with their political rhetoric. Death comes for us all...eventually. It will come to ME. It will come to YOU. The question we ALL need to ask ourselves (as we look in the mirror) is:

What impact am I having in the world right now with the life I'm living, the actions I'm taking?

If I die tomorrow, my eternal soul (which I choose to believe in for...reasons) will not care overly much about the dead corpse it hovers over for a moment before "passing on." But it might...it MIGHT...care about the legacy it leaves behind. Will it be a legacy it's proud of? Will it have been a life that touched many lives in a positive, selfless manner? 

All of which, I understand, may make me seem callous or (at least) indifferent to the death...the murder...of a fellow human being. And perhaps I am. But I am not indifferent to the suffering of the man's loved ones that are left behind. I empathize. I've lost loved ones. And I can well imagine (I have a vivid imagination) how I would feel if I lost my child to a murderous individual armed with an assault rifle...the anger, the sadness, the disbelief.

All those various stages of grief.

We all die, sooner or later. For all I know, I might die today: struck down by a stray bullet, killed in a car accident, or murdered by an aneurysm in my own over-stressed brain. It happens. It is not unusual to die...it is (as said) inevitable. So it's up to me...to ME...to make sure that the life I live is worthy of being called a life in my eyes, by my understanding of what a "good life" is. Right now, that means getting up before the crack of dawn and getting breakfast ready for my high school student before taking him to school, and then coming home and repeating the process for my middle school student. Later on, it will be...other things.

This is life for humans. We live and then we die. "Deserve" has nothing to do with it. Living in fear...fear of the inevitable...is a damn waste of time and effort. Worry about what's important right now: living. Living a good life. Being a positive force in the world. Touching others lives in a positive way. Trying to leave the world a better place, not a worse one.

Yeah, there are cynics out there who don't buy any of that. "Get mine NOW, because when you die you're GONE." Okay, buddy. These are the folks who choose to live in fear...fear that they, too, will get murdered or struck down in some fashion and then they'll be GONE, unable to get anymore of THEIRS NOW. I've got news for those people:

You are going to die. Sorry. You will. The evidence, the facts, are clear on this account.

All right. That's enough for now...I've got a busy day ahead of me. Blessings and best wishes for all of you taking the time to read this (and for those who didn't, too). Happy Monday.

Yours In Faith