n5667

...Shall we say selfish, might I pose a question on the issue of death?

Well thanks, that's very generous of you all. Anyway, not coming from a religious household (agnostic is about as true a believer as we have), I've never had any answers to all those fun spiritual things. Now I'm a very skeptical agnostic, whose only real concern is dying (I don't want to damnit!).

Not thinking about it seems to work rather well, usually, but as of late, the whole issue hit me rather hard, and even resulted in me seeing a therapist for a session or two... Anyway, to pose the question - How do you guys deal with it, exactly? I realize there's no quick solution, but perhaps, well, uh... that's why I'm asking!

Anyway, thanks to all of you for taking the time to respond!

-Nick

*edit*

Crimony, I phrased that AWFULLY! I meant my death. I feel rather self-obsessed about it all, really...

Sorry Trek!

trekbette

I hope that the person who passed lived a full life and try to remember what I loved about them. In that way, the dead do kind of live on. The best gift you can give to someone is to remember them.

Also, be it burial or creamation, in a way, the dead do give back to the earth (circle of life and all that).

Captain Howdy

tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day to the last syllable of recorded time, and all our yesterdays have painted fools the way to dusty death. out, out brief candle, life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. - Shakespeare,- on death, soliloquy by macbeth (as i remember it)

When they die, they die. When it's your turn, and you die, and you don't exist. When you don't exist, you don't know anything, and when you don't know anything, you're happy, because ignorance is bliss.

Marruk

Death is just one of those things in life that I can't control, unless I wanted to hurry up the process a bit and do my self in. But since I am in no hurry I just don't worry about it. There are so many other things to do in life that it just seems a waste of time to go worrying about death. It will happen eventually, but I have no clue how or when. It could happen tomarrow for all I know. I imagine it will be much like it was before I was born, wich as far as I know that was nothing. Don't think death will bother me much after I'm dead so I don't let it bother me much while I am living.

Rhea

When I sit down and really think about death, I conclude that, in death, I won't know or care about a damned thing.

So then I realize, what I really care about is whether I'm living the kind of life I want to. Because in order to care, I have to be alive.

That's how I deal with it. Death is just the end of living.
So.
Back to living...

Never

Like a few others have said. Death is one of those things you cannot change. I have a general rule in my head that I don't worry about things I cannot change. It's a waste of time and energy. When it happens to me, all I can hope for is that I won't suffer before the end. When it happens to others in my life, that's harder because I'm still here to feel the loss of that person. But again, you have no choice but to deal with it and go on. I admit, when my dad passed away, I couldn't stop shaking and had to get tranquilizers from the doctor. But that was temporary and after about a year I'd quit crying all the time.
It does bother me that mankind has not made more progress in their understanding of cancer as it is so prevalent and so random in it's choice of victims. If I were smarter, I'd go into research since that is something you can do about it.
I'd say try to live a healthy life but not to the extent you can't enjoy it as much as you can. Get regular checkups to prevent letting a small health problem get out of hand. Then just try to forget about it because that's all the control you have.

Carlos

Since death is something I have no power over, I am free. Free of the rights and duties that come with something I do have power over, that is. Worrying is pointless because I cannot change the inevitable result. That's where I start. Then I realize that I cannot apply the same argument to other cases: I worry about the health and prosperity of my friends and family, conflicts around the globe, etc. These are things over which I have little or no power. So clearly there is more to it than that, at least for me. I don't have a good answer beyond that. I know I'm not as worried about death as others, but can't really explain it.

Maybe it would help if you could identify in greater detail what it is that bothers you. Is it that death means the end of you as a being (assuming a "traditional" agnostic view of death)? Concerns about those left behind? Fear of dying in certain ways?

Oxymoron

Death sucks.

My death will suck. The death of friends and family will suck even more because I will have to witness it. If you don't get upset about death, then you really can't enjoy friendship and lovers and sex and food and drink and all those other things that makes sentient existence so amazing.

So enjoy your life and those you share it with; it is bitter-sweet, and experiencing both is The Deal.

Philosoft

I've been anesthetized before and I distinctly remember... nothing. I remember going under; it was like no time had passed when I woke up. I suspect the act of dying will be similar, attendant pain notwithstanding. Whatever it is, I don't find anything to fear at this point.

elanah

"Why should I fear death? If I am, death is not. If death is, I am not. Why should I fear that which can only exist when I do not?"
-- Epicurus