Brushes with death have shown me that death is not to be feared.
Over 30 years ago, I was trapped in a fire. There was a picture in the newspaper of some firemen carrying me on a stretcher, in what appeared to be a body bag.
I was in a coma for some time. When I woke up, the doctors said that I had survived by a medical miracle; the level of carbon monoxide poisoning in my body was more than enough to kill someone my weight.
Somehow I felt that I had died, because the life that I knew died; changed forever. I had to relearn everything, including walking, talking and eating.
Life after the fire is one in which a traumatic brain injury (TBI) rules my mind and has become my friend and enemy.
That was my personal brush with death.
Last year I had another brush with death, not my own.
It was the sudden death of Michael Blum, my best friend of 25 years. Michael’s death without warning affected me deeply. He took me around through time, to the fire and back. The death of my friend has made my life forever different.
These brushes with death, mine and my friend’s, have shown me that death is not to be feared.
I have faced my own mortality. I know that one day I will die. However, it will only be an earthly death, not the death of my soul or spirit.
How do I know this?
First: we are all made up of three parts: our mind, our bodies, and our souls.
Second: Our soul, or our spirit, if you will, is pure energy.
Einstein, one of the most intelligent men in the world, once said that energy cannot be created (by man), nor can it be destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another.
So I’ve come to realize this: when we die, we simply leave our bodies and minds behind, and go in the form of our souls to some other place.
Where is that place? It’s a bit of speculation… For me, I think it’s going back to where we were created, to a place I call home or God, or Source or Creator.
Therefore, I do not fear my death. I only have one fear: it is that I will not have achieved all my goals, dreams and aspirations, or that I will not have given enough love to help other people, before I die.
Therefore, I live by this Simple Daily Principle: Treasure every moment I have with someone, even if it’s just myself.