Читать книгу Before We Say Goodbye: Preparing for a Good Death - Ray Simpson - Страница 20

We ourselves, in some cases, prudently choose a partial death. A mangled, painful limb which cannot be restored we willingly cut off. He who plucks out a tooth parts with it freely, since then pain goes with it. And he who quits the whole body parts at once with all pains and possibilities of pains and diseases which it was liable to. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

Our last day on earth is best thought of as our final, rather than as our only death. There are lots of ‘little deaths’ before that. In one sense, this is good news. It gives us a chance to practise going through little deaths without fear and even with flair.

We encounter little deaths whenever we experience loss. The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche pointed out that, ‘The dying person has probably lost during the course of life things more important than what they are about to lose by dying.’

We can experience loss of all the following:

• A friendship

• An ambition

• A job

• A home

• A bodily part

• Good looks

• Self-esteem

• Reputation

• Security

The way we handle loss often proves to be more important than the fact of loss in itself. Out of every defeat a victory can be snatched.

My train or car breaks down. This thwarts my strong desire to be present at an event that is important to me. My instinct is to be angry, to become tense, and not to be present to myself or to those around me. I have a choice, however. I can choose to say, ‘God, I place into your hands the situation I was bound for … Now I place into your hands the situation I find myself in.’ Whenever our ego wants its own way and we allow it to ‘die’, we are, gently and gradually, preparing for our final death.

Why not think through some current or possible little deaths of which you are conscious? Practise embracing loss, and using it as a foundation for building something deeper and more lasting.