As much as I'd like to be a vampire, I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen. (Though I do love being bitten on the neck!) Not to be so grim here, especially in light of 'the year of perfect vision,' but I do feel like we need to talk about death as it is a natural part of life. Maybe, just maybe, if we had a better relationship with death, we would not see it as such a bad thing. Now, I am not trying to be insensitive, especially people who have lost so tragically and unexpectedly, but being that no one is promised tomorrow, maybe we could all adjust how we live so that when death comes for us, we wouldn't be so scared or underprepared. 

You see, most of us think about what we are doing later today, next week, next month, next year, and we plan for the future, but we don't realize that if we are just going through the motions of life and not living consciously, we are kind of wasting our life away anyway. Life is a gift, and one that most of us take for granted. And I'm pretty sure that if we valued and respected our lives and the lives of others, we may just be able to surrender to death a little more easily. 

I would like to believe that our souls live on, this is why I also believe in previous lives. I can't deny some deja vu moments that didn't happen in this century. But I also believe that our bodies are just vessels that house our souls for however long they can. Some of us are not kind to our bodies and malnourish them. They need good food, healthy food, and lots of water to function properly. It was when my husband was on his death bed and I felt the warmth going out of his hands that I realized that our bodies are simply machines. They function perfectly until we have dis-ease.

Ultimately, death teaches us how to live better, or that we should be living better, but I think we have ignored this until recently. Covid really has brought many issues to the surface that needed to be addressed and this is just one of them. But this is why I love yoga and meditation so much. Because those practices teach us how to surrender and let go, to breathe through the pain, because it is only temporary. The only thing constant in this life is change. 

We get so wrapped up in our current situation, but forget that it will not be like this forever. And then our mind gets a hold of it and we spiral into a million different scenarios as to how awful life is. We create our lives. We can choose to be positive under any circumstances, to breathe through any situation. When things are bad, just breathe. Just don't forget to exhale. A lot of people hold their breath in when they are angry and frustrated and that anger lives inside of you. And if you don't let it go, it will grow. I believe that is what happened to my late husband. He was an angry dude and held onto things that happened in his past which affected his present situation and ultimately took his future. Your issues are in the tissues. 

Your body speaks to you and it is up to you to listen. Have you ever talked to some who ended up having some horrible disease and they said 'they knew it?' It is because their body was sending them messages all along and finally screaming at them. Sadly, when this happens, it is often too late. And just like no one is in charge of what you put in your body, no one is responsible to take care of you. You are basically responsible for taking care of yourself. And that not only goes for your physical body, but your mental and emotional well being. Even spiritually we have issues that could be seen as demons and by avoiding them or shaming ourselves to societal norms of what really isn't healthy, we are not being true to our core, our soul. Don't let your choices (your life) be dictated by ANYONE.

If you need someone to talk to, no subject, especially the hard ones, are outside of my realm of comfortability. I create a safe space for clients to share openly and honestly about whatever is ailing them and together we come up with solutions to move forward. Remember, you are in charge of your life. If you need help regaining your confidence to live the life you so desire, consider booking a session with me.

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This mini memoir shares the intimate experiences of my late husband's battle with cancer. This was my first real experience with death and we each are here to have our very own experience. I just hope that by sharing mine and talking about death that I help others move through their pain so that they can live instead of grieving for the rest of their lives. Just cause your loved one has passed on, does not mean that you have to as well. If you are sill fortunate enough to be alive, I urge you (and I bet your living and dead loved ones would agree) keep living. This is your one life to live and you are still here. Create the life that you desire, you deserve it!