My Carpe Diem Life: Week 56: Pondering the Meaning of Life

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Week 56: Pondering the Meaning of Life

On January 9th, the world lost a great man.. my Uncle Bill. He was 96 and had an amazing life.

My uncle had the kind of life, and death, that we all would want. He was kind and funny and was incredibly fit, still riding his bike in his 90's. I was really amazed at his health and his wit when I got a chance to visit him a few years ago. He took a fall and broke his hip over Thanksgiving and was never able to recover, but he was surrounded by so much love every day of his life, including those last days.

Even though my uncle was 96 and had a better, longer life than most of us will, his death is a sad reminder of death's inevitability. My aunt and cousins and so many people who loved my uncle are grieving and, I know very well how difficult it is to move forward with life after someone you love dies.

I know this is a bit "off-topic" of my usual 60 until 60 goals, but I suppose as I near that magic age that initiates us into elderhood, I also am facing my own mortality.. and maybe even more upsetting, the increasing number of deaths I'll need to endure as people I love die. A definite downside of getting older.

I went to a very interesting documentary, 63-Up, on Saturday.. the most recent installment of the "Up Series" that follows the lives of 14 British people, starting at age 7 and every 7 years after, (7-Up, 14-Up, 21-Up, etc.) They are now 63, and they, too, are facing issues of mortality.

Throughout this past 56 weeks, as I've been faithfully executing my goals, I've been for the most part, very happy. But I've also seen how easy it is to fall into a mood.. to feel sad about things that are out of my control.. Even the smallest thing.. an unintentional rejection from someone, for example, can start to make me feel negative. If I don't watch out, I can go into my "Who cares?" mode. "We all just die, so what does any of this matter?"

But then I remember this post from one of my favorite self-help gurus, Neil Pasricha, who reminds me that the short time we have left is exactly why every moment does matter.

I also remember the quote from my Carpe Diem inspiration, Craig Dunham, who wrote this when faced with his ALS diagnosis:

This time, is a gift that many people have not been given. I especially appreciate the opportunity to show my children how life can be lived without anger, resentment, bitterness or regrets. I have purged all of that from my life and intend to leave this life with nothing but love, acceptance, forgiveness and compassion in my heart. I am so ready to live life to its fullest, I only wish I would have thought to do it sooner.

So, rather than carry on in this negative tone about the inevitability of death, I will thank my Uncle Bill for inspiring me to live a full life and end this week's blog post with some Carpe Diem moments from my week.