I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t for my dog to be convulsing on the couch. I’d awoken to a cry that perturbed the otherwise tranquil house. Despite being groggy from waking up, I went to investigate the source of the noise. I was definitely not prepared for what I saw. Ollie was shaking spastically, his legs kicking out and his eyes rolled up into his head. Appalled, I watched as my dog continued to writhe in pain. It froze me to my spot, and I was unsure of how to react until Ollie fell off the couch and laid sickeningly still on the ground. My mom, who’d been woken up in the turmoil, walked in and saw him collapsed on the ground. Ollie was promptly rushed to the animal hospital. Episodes like that continued to occur for …show more content…
I began to ponder what would happen around the time of my death. Questions such as, “Am I actually significant, or just another wave in an endless sea of people? Are any of my actions going to have even a slight impact on the world? What is my purpose on this planet, and am I fulfilling it?” Began consuming my thoughts, and the fact that I couldn't answer any of them was disturbing. The reality that my demise could happen at any possible time and was inevitable terrified me and began to follow me in every waking moment. The fact that I had never taken the time to think about these things previously shocked me, and the suddenness of Ollie's death had made me aware of how fragile life really …show more content…
She’d become concerned with the amount of time I spent by myself in my room.
“Don't you think it's time you went out and did something, Jo? I feel like I haven't seen you in days,” my mom confessed to me one night I’d had enough energy to eat dinner.
“I'm fine, just thinking through some things. Give me a couple days and I'll be back to normal,” I responded, uneasy to be broaching the subject.
“We all have our own ways of grieving, but I'm concerned that yours isn't healthy. Do you know anyone in their right mind that sleeps for thirteen hours a day and spends their free time crying or staring at a wall like you’ve been? Neither do I,” my mom responded. I looked down at my uneaten food and mulled over whether or not to tell my mom the truth about my condition.
“It's not just about Ollie, though,” I said quietly after a long pause.“To be honest, I think there’s something wrong with me. Ever since Ollie died I haven't been able to get over how much it caught me off-guard. I keep thinking, like, why are we here? What's the point of doing anything if we’re just going to die and be forgotten? I can't function normally, everything seems
Professor Pausch said that “…it’s not the things we do in life that we regret on our deathbed, it’s the things we do not.” On Morrie’s deathbed he says to Mitch, “…because if you’ve found meaning in your life, you don’t want to go back” (Albom 118). Both of these quotes make you think about what the day will bring you and essentially allows you to ask questions like ‘who will I impact and what can I do to make a
death may begin to sprout in an individual's mind as a reminder of the shortness of life.
The big question. No not that, the other one. The "what happens to us after life" question. It is something that has intrigued people everywhere. It has prompted the beliefs and semantics of different cultures all around the world. It started wars, divided people, and now dictates how we are all to act. "We should do this, we should do that. If we don't, we will be punished." I, for one, am tired of it. By all means, think what you will. But this is my writing, and you will have to open your mind to my thinking if you wish to continue. If you do wish to continue, I will be brutaly honest in what I think. There will be no sugar-coating in this oppinionated essay of mine.
The conventional belief is that anyone facing imminent death uses his or her final moment to think about those who mean the most in his or her life. While this is nearly impossible confirm, it seems that the overwhelming finality of death would render any subsequent...
“That is my playing mom.” I answered. She then closed the door and proceed to wash the dishes. My mom just complained about my playing and she usually never pays attention. I thought to myself. I soon began taking
You wake up in the hospital, look around, and find a doctor hovering nearby declaring that you have just suffered through a heart attack; affirming that if not for your dog, you would have died. You remember back to earlier that day: sitting on the couch, feeling a little off, hearing your dog barking, sensing him nudging you, going to the phone to call the ambulance, and having your dog by your side until you were safe inside the aluminum walls of the emergency vehicle. Although it sounds abnormal that a dog would be the one to save someone’s life, situations similar to the one above are not uncommon. Dogs and other household pets have been shown to be able to detect medical emergencies, including heart attacks and seizures, in their owners.
Celebrating Life Where do we go after we die? What happens to our souls? Is there really people walking among us who haven’t found peace? Many questions have been asked about death, but no answer has been really found.
There are two things in this life that we are all bound to encounter, stress and death. Stress is something that affects each and every human, each and every day. Some of us may have higher levels of stress than others. One reaction to stress may be anxiety. Anxiety is a physiological, as well as a psychological state. Anxiety may be viewed as a “more intense” form of stress. Each person will differ when it comes to their own personal causes of anxiety but quite a common worrisome form is that of death anxiety. Every living human being will eventually die, that is a universal truth but quite a bitter pill to swallow. What happens after death? Why is it my time to die? When will I die? How will I die? Etc. These are the types of questions that one with the death anxiety disorder would ask themselves’ on a daily basis. Such thoughts are not immune to the sufferers of this disorder; they simply have a much more difficult time putting such issues to rest. In fact, it is safe to assume that such a powerful idea could possibly affect the everyday life.
The universe, and what it means to be alive is almost impossible to define; yet that does not stop humanity from trying. “Lonergan’s philosophy of the human person reveals that being human means having an unlimited number and variety of questions about life and the universe.” (Morgan, 1996). There is no limit on the number and variety of questions the human person will ask, "the most subversive people are those who ask questions” (Gaarder), as a result there are many varied and opinionated answers. This essay will explore three different theories on how one might find answers to life's ultimate questions. At one point or another, every human being has asked the question why: Why am I here? What is my purpose? What is the point? It is in our nature as human beings to reason, to think, to ask, it is what separates us from the rest of creation, and with this ability to reason, we are left with one question: Why? Throughout history many have tried to answer this question, some have come to the conclusion that meaning is found through God, and one’s faith. Others feel that life begins meaningless, and it is up to the individual to give life meaning; then there are those who believe that life has no meaning, and we are all essentially, just waiting to die, "The meaning of life is that it ends." (Kafka).
The “What If?” About Death The subject of death still proves to be under considerable debate. It is no secret that persons fear the unknown: asking yourself a question as simple as “What if?” can stimulate anxiety or panic.
I didn’t know if the mean person was out of my house yet. I didn’t know if he came with someone else and if they were waiting for me. I was too afraid to get up and walk down the hall. I was frozen in time.
I could tell from my mother's stern voice that she wasn’t going to budge on this one. I turned around, hunched my shoulders, dropped my head, and walked down the hall to clean my room, pouting the entire way. I turned into the room and saw a huge mess. “This is going to take forever!” I thought as I looked around at the toys, puzzles, books, and clothes strewn about all over. There was no way I could clean all this up and still have time to go play with my friends. “Jeez, Mom doesn’t understand anything. If she would just let me go play, then I would come back and clean it up later,” I thought to myself. “She is no fun at all. When I’m a mom I will never make my kids clean their room,” I vowed to myself. I started cleaning, putting toys in the toy box, books on the shelf, shoes and dress-up clothes in the closet.
I am put on Earth with billions of others, and I will find my purpose and where I am supposed to go. Eventually I will crash into the shore, but in doing so I will give back to future generations. Everything happens in a cycle and everyone dies eventually. So I cannot think of why to be sorrowful and dwell on the fact you will no longer be living when you have had a joyous life and made your impact on two people, a hundred, a thousand, or the
One thing that we often hear is that “death is just a part of life.” So often in our day and age do we hear people utter these words. However, death is far more significant and impactful than some would allege. True death is not merely a time when we cease to exist; it is an entombment, a mindset in which we are dead to this world. Throughout our lives, it is true that we can all be dead in one way or another, but it does not have to be that way. When we have our eyes opened to what death actually is, it is far easier to grasp what the true meaning of life is, and to embrace it. Often, we will come across individuals who are enveloped in death and others who are immersed in true life. The shadow of death and entombment lies upon some, encompassing
This phrase went round and round my head until it became dizzy. I had never thought of death before. To think that I was going to die before my parents, my friends, and even my younger brother. To think that I had so much unfinished business to complete before I left this world.