Stop saying death...

Despite the teachings of spirituality, religion, or whatever organization/institution that discusses the natural order of human life; the term death has such a negative connotation as it represents closure to our Life. Life is an experience and all experiences end. Instead of saying, death or died, we should say ‘The Experience is over…’ to create more of a pragmatic and fulfilling approach to a life well lived. Yes, capitalization is required and I’ll explain why later.

Fear is rooted in the word death as to most it represents the unknown. When I say death, it conjures up a person in a hospital bed agonizingly taking his/her last breath before the release, while struggling with the notion that he/she is about to drift somewhere (…that could just be me). It’s human nature to fear uncertainty, but I feel as though we should stop saying death so we can look at life as a simple experience in the grand experiment of humanity; understanding that an experience (in the context of being a human being) is finite.

Again, Life is an experience and all experiences end. That is all that it is. In this experience, you take a journey and the journey will have a conclusion, but along the way many experiences will shape the narrative that you control based on choice. That’s how I look at it. When I see a headline of a famous person who has passed or an individual that has passed, the first words 9 times out of 10 are ‘Death’ or ‘Died’. It’s blunt and if I may be frank, deduces the entire experience of a life and the mini experiences that shape it. Furthermore, it reinforces the notion of a journey abruptly, ‘cut’ down. An experience cut down. A life cut down. No, the experience is simply over. Headlines should say, ‘Singer Prince at 57, Experience over” or ‘Experience over/ends for Singer Prince at 57’ Why?

Aside from experience assuaging the bluntness of the word ‘death’, when used, ‘death’, shoves under the rug a rare and unique experience; A life - your life. When death is used, it only makes me more anxious creating a one-track mind to enjoy a ‘single experience’ known as life when I’ve been experiencing multiple experiences within life since I’ve been born. I know what it’s like for an experience to end and to be uncertain of what’s next, drifting aimlessly into an abyss.

When a relationship is over, the experience is complete.  You don’t know what is going to happen after! You’re only 9 once. That year is over. When you leave your job, that experience is over. When you graduate, that experience is over. These are all mini closures - things that will never be again, in this current place and time which let you know, experiences are ending constantly. Now imagine if you stepped into this mindset and viewed The Experience (capitalized because this is Life overall which is comprised of all of the mini-experiences that shape it) in this manner? It would not be a hard pill to swallow and you’d be even more prepared, dare I say excited but more so ‘blasé’ instead of anxious to accept what we all will face.

By using The Experience is over, instead of death we are able to view life as The Experience comprised of many experiences that show us the concept of permanence and why it is important to embrace the journey and accept its end. Try this thought out.