Death is a part of life. It is the end of life on this earth. Some of us believe in life after death. Some of us believe in eternal life. Some of us think our bodies will rot in the ground, and that is the end.
Regardless of your thoughts, opinions, beliefs, and experience, I think that we can all agree that someday we will stop breathing. At that moment, we will know if we were right or wrong. We will know the answer to one of the world's most asked questions because we will have faced death face-to-face.
A Childhood Memory
Michael entered the world 9 months before I did. For 3 months each year, I boasted that I was as old as Michael. We were best friends. I looked up to him. I wanted to be like him.
At the age of 3, Michael could not get over the cold. Weeks of sickness lead to weeks of tests. Instead of overcoming a common cold or flu, our family received grave news. Michael was diagnosed with childhood leukemia.
I don't have any memories of Michael with hair. Chemotherapy made his hair fall out as a child, and genetics would have done the same as an adult. I do remember playing hours and hours of Atari with him. I remember playing hide-and-seek and feeding the calves.
I remember when his skin looked pale, and he did not enough energy to play. I remember the shunt in his chest and that we could not always wrestle like we wanted to.
I remember the day Michael went to the St. Jude Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, but then he never came back. He had made that trip many times, but his body was no longer capable of raging war against his enemy. He had lost the battle with cancer.
A Man I Knew
My time overseas was a tremendous blessing for me and my family. We meet many wonderful people.
I am reminded of a couple I knew. The man was older, much older than his wife. There was easily a 20 to 30 year gap in age. Some people might say that he was "robbing the cradle" or that she was "digging for gold." All I know is that they loved each other.
The husband was a tall, strong looking man. Even though he was easily in his 50's you could tell that he could still work hard. He looked fit. He looked healthy.
The husband became sick, and it was weeks since I had last seen him. As we entered the room, I was shocked. He was a shell of the physical man that I remembered. For several weeks, he had been starving to death. A once strong, filled out frame now could not hide his bones. His large hands were feeble and weak. He could not sit up, he could not shake hands, and he could not even greet us with a hello or goodbye. Death was consuming him. Life was leaving him. And on that day, I say death in a way that I hoped to never see again.
A Man I Just Meet
Visiting local villages was always an interesting event. On this trip, some friends from the United States accompanied me and some Indonesian friends to a village that was over 5 hours away.
We were welcomed with open arms. Members of the community fixed local specialty dishes to commemorate the occasion. But the celebratory spirit would not last.
One lady asked that I come to visit her father-in-law. He had been sick. Much to my surprise, yet again was looking at a man who was being consumedd by death. He too was wasting away from startvation.
How do you comfort a family you do not know well? How do you comfort a man you have just met, whomayy only have hours to live? I prayed. I prayed for a miracle. I prayed for physical healing and more importantly for spiritual reconciliation.
As my heart ached, I prayed. Weeks later I found out that the man had passed way.
Final Thougths
Some people say the only guarantee in life is Death and Taxes. As I write my heart hurts. These memories of death are still vivid. The pictures that are etched in my mind cannot be erased. I have seen death.
Though death appears to be victorious, I believe that eternal life will be victorious. I look forward to my forever home. One not built by the hands of man, but rather prepared by the Grace of God.
- Have you seen death?
- How have you dealt with the loss of a loved one?
- Are you ready to die?
- Do you believe in life after death?
I want to heard from you. Leave your comments below.
@SumatraNate
Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/hiding-boy-girl-child-young-box-1209131/
The older I get the harder it becomes in dealing with the death of friends and family members. I have to experience the loss of my parents, and my wife's mother and seven good friends, it never gets any easier.
I am not afraid of dying, that part doesn't scare me, it is when my time is up I want out fast. It is a real toll on the people you love to have to watch you suffer and die in a lot of cases and that is the part that I would hate to leave people with.
My youngest daughter who is 10, has a good friend that is battling with an inoperable brain tumor and we dread answering the phone when caller ID show's it is her friends mother. We love these people and the little girl like family, don't get me wrong, we dread knowing that one of these days it will be the call that she has died and that is going to be very tough on everyone and it will be the first time my girl will have lost someone important in her life.
I am sorry for the loss you have experienced. It is a harsh reality that we all face. It is especially hard when we grieve as our children grieve. I hope that this young lady will have many peace filled days and wonderful time with family. I pray that your daughter will enjoy every moment and make some great memories to hold on to.
Thanks man. It is really a rough time for my girl, nearly not as rough though for her friend and her family.
I agree. They will experience grief (and maybe have already started). You daughter will as well. Keep supporting her as she works through this for the first time.
I have not seen death in person, but the shadow of death. The dark empty place it always leaves behind. It is this empty place that keeps me from walking away from people I should consider leaving in my past.
However, if I leave them, then who will be left to minister to them. Who will walk quietly and help them with strength when they are weak.
Some I do leave, because they would devour my strength for their pleasure, never seeking relief from their predicament.
Grace isn't just for us here and now, but it is for all of us who will stand with Christ Jesus at Judgement.
I found my hope and strength in the Prince of Peace. I anticipate a day when the sting of death is not more.
Keep ministering to people on this earth. We all need the Advocate to stand and plead our case.
Death is a difficult subject isn't it... people have various perceptions and reactions to it. I have had people close to me die, so I guess you can say I've faced death; it's an eventuality! You can only control a little of the circumstances around it sometimes, and sometimes not at all.
How to deal with it - move on and remember them...
I think I am ready, sometimes... sometimes not
And after death... I still don't know yet...
Death is indeed a difficult subject. My faith teaches me that there is a way to know what happens after this life. That gives me hope. I am not ready to leave this earth because I still want to care for my family and friends, but if death comes sooner than I expected I am ready for the next part of my eternal journey.
I hope you find peace and can say that you are ready.
mungkin untuk kami di Aceh kematian adalah sebuah hal yang menjadi santapan sehari-hari, saat konflik Aceh masih terus bergolak, hampir setiap hari saya melihat kematian, puncaknya saat bencana Tsunami, kematian ribuan saudara kami didepan mata mengeringkan air mata, semua itu karena keyakinan kami bahwa segala sesuatu adalah milik Allha, Allah bebas mengambilnya kapan saja, dimana saja, dengan cara apapun juga.
Tuhan mahakuasa, mahatahu, dan mahakasih. Walapun saya cari rencana Dia, saya tidak selalu memahami rencanaNya. Orang Aceh milik Allah. Kita semua milik Allah. Tuhan memberkati!
I have stared at death many times. It does not get any easier. To comfort people, just being there is often enough. It shows you care enough to visit. Some folks avoid death and dying like it is a plague. It is part of the circle of life. I believe your spirit lives on even though your physical vessel is no longer here.
I agree that it is not an easy thing to do, but I hope that I can provide some comfort to those who are passing on. I agree that we are spiritual beings who live forever. The body is temporal.
I can feel how hard it is, I lost my father long time ago, when I was not at his side. I pray from the distance, I went back 2 days later, what I could see only his grave.
The only thing I could and can do is accept it as the fact of life, it is only the matter of time. we will surely face it one day. I pray I have enough time to do good things to others, my families and myself.
thank you @sumatranate for sharing you personal life with us. I pray for you and your family, May God bless you and your family always.
I am sorry to hear that you have lost your father. I am sad that you were not able to be with him when he passed away.
We will all face death. I find that I have not comfort in the things I do, but only in God's ways. Thank you for your continued support and kind words. Thank you for the prayers.
saya sudah beberapa kali melihat kematian datang mengambil seseorang yang saya cintai, saya mampu bertahan karena saya menyakini bahwa kematian adalah awal dari keabadian, saya hanya selalu berdoa semoga orang yang saya cintai itu mendapat kebaikan sesudah mati, dengan doa saya semakin kuat,
Saya suka kalimat ini. Sangat seteujuh. Tapi saya percaya kita harus berdoa sebelum seseoranga mati bahwa mereka dapat jalan lurus. Tahan terus teman!
Life is a life form birth to death. Should live with the right decision in that life. Real life misery is most common
Life is hard for the living. And death is hard for the living. But I believe that there is a reason to live.
I completely understand where you are coming from. I have unfortunately been around death far too often. I even wrote about it on one of my older blog posts - https://steemit.com/steemstem/@liquidtravel/in-search-of-the-adventure-galley-death-of-an-archaeologist. It is fairly old so there is no upvoting but I thought it might interest you.
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In the past year I have been to nine funerals. Four were for very old people who had become frail and were clearly close to death. Two were for elderly people who seemed to be in great physical and mental health, but sadly got ill and rapidly deteriorated. The other three were for young people (under 60). One died of a brain haemorrhage, one died very suddenly of a rare illness, and the other one got lost in a storm. With the frail elderly people I felt glad that their time had come and they died in peace and with their affairs in order, although one of them was mother to my cousins, and while she had been ill and suffering for years, I felt very sad for them.
The other deaths upset me a lot. I had trouble sleeping for about a week after my friend was lost in the storm, wondering what she went through. Death, when it happens unexpectedly, can make you reassess your own life. When a good friend died 10 years ago, I helped her relatives sort through all her things. She had left no will, and it was a mess. I immediately got my lawyer to help me draw up a will. It has also made me think about my possessions, that we are just borrowing them. And it's made me re-evaluate my priorities.
Life after death? We are living it! Where were we before we were born?