We’re all a little afraid of death, we’re afraid because no matter how old you are, you often think of what happens when you die.
I am 42 and I think I have attended more funerals than weddings.
Fun fact. I attend a lot of weddings.
First thought when someone dies has always been about my last interaction with that person. Then comes a barrage of questions.
Did they live a good life?
What/ whom have they left behind?
Do we really think they are in a better place?
Why do we always say the nicest things once someone is gone? Things we have never said about that person when they were alive.
Would I have done things differently had I known that it was my last interaction with him/her (them/they or whatever the shit I am supposed to say to be gender positive)?
There are some deaths that I am struggling to put behind and not really move on. From a family member whom we lost to an addiction to a friend mowed down by a cab to a friend who took his own life, people have left in the most bizarre way possible.
While I know that all of us will have to leave at some point, would things be different if we knew when we had to leave? Let me rephrase that. Would things be different if we knew someone close to us will be gone before we wake up tomorrow?
All the hate, ego, complications, frictions, things we get irritated at the drop of a hat with people whom we may never see again, is it worth it?
What if.
What if we were to treat every interaction with another human as if it were the last? Will we be able to park aside all the human weaknesses mentioned above and make every touchpoint a wee bit better?
I am not perfect. Not even close to it. But, since 2016 when I lost a close friend, this is something I’ve tried to do. Haven’t always worked. But, its a journey. As weird as it sounds, I try to treat every interaction as it were the last. I hope I get better at it and make my interactions more meaningful and less complicated.
Wouldn’t the world be a much better place if all of us did that? Like every friggin interaction.
May be or maybe it’s wishful thinking. Although, I do believe we all can be better in our interactions with others.
Say things to people you love what you really love about them.
Hug people you really care about.
Help that struggling friend by saying you care and you are here to help in whatever capacity you can.
Tell your aging parents what you truly feel about them before it’s too late.
Call that friend you haven’t spoken to in years to just say hey.
Help a random stranger if you think that might just make their day.
Pass on a cool life hack to a (/your) kid.
And, when you both wake up the next morning. Repeat.
Things might just be a little happy and fun. No?
