“Nothing is more creative than death. Since it’s the whole secret of life.” ~ Alan Watts

Let me start off by saying that this isn’t a new way to disillusion about the hard realities of death. It’s a perspective to realize that death isn’t such a horrible thing. It is a creative way to view death.

The media loves death and it’s hard for me to watch the news. That is a reality of being alive, it must end. Suck it up buttercup, the show must go on! Hiding from it doesn’t change anything so how do I cope with the concept?

The pain of watching something die can be excruciatingly painful but it is also beautiful at the same time. When I step back and objectively look at the concept of death, it is everywhere.

When I see death, it is like a kaleidoscope twist on life—whether it’s death of a being, a relationship, or an idea—and it has the power to twist my perspective.

When something can no longer go on, the last final breaths can demonstrate what may be gained from the experience. Whether its an abrupt ending or an ongoing dive, you carry it with you always, it never leaves your consciousness—the lesson of death, the impermanence of existence.

Our relationships, our ideas are always moving and transforming. If we attach ourselves to them it makes things painful. This thing, relationship, creation, person etc. was a part of me, and now it’s as lifeless as a ketchup packet.

The thought process after death is to question the meaning of life. What will I do without them? How could I have stopped this? What did I do wrong? Why? The endless torment of the acceptance phase.

I’ve seen living things die and not come back physically. I’ve seen the face of mental illness steal the life from someone’s eyes. I’ve seen them come back to life. I’ve seen what looks like vital life only to be flipped upside down into a impossible long road of tortuous struggle to stay alive and end too short. I’ve seen what looks to the outsider like a strong human being full of potential, only to realize they were dying spiritually.

I don’t have to go to the tragic places of the world to understand the concept of death and rebirth, I just have to look around and remark on all of the beginnings and endings that are right here, right now.

I think the hardest part about being a witness to this life is what do I do after I see death?  In the end, I find that my choices are the only thing I have.

The choices I make are my paint brush to creatively emerge from the reality of death.

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Relephant bonus: 

The Best Quote I’ve Ever Heard. (Ever.)

Alan Watts on the Meaning of Life.

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Author: Michelle Taylor

Editor: Katarina Tavčar

Photo: Screenshot from a video