What do you think about death?

Along the way, due to my abiding interest in art, I worked in three art museums, eventually becoming the director of the graphic design department at The Museum of Modern Art in New York, which produces the graphic design for exhibitions, publications and marketing.
 
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I'm totally for the concept of death, though I would have to embrace it someday. I personnally believe that there's nothing after it, and I'm not overly fond of representation of the afterlife (even though I loved the series "Les Thanatonautes" by Bernard Werber). The notion I don't get is that you're supposed to live on through your offspring. General consensus is that you live forever when you make children, because they are a part of you. That, for me, is bullshit. That doesn't stop you from not-existing anymore and even if there was some kind of afterlife, that would kinda reduce your spawn as a reference point to your mortal existence even though you're supposed to have ascended (provided you go to paradise which shouldn't be an issue for me).

Even your memories fades and corrode over time, leaving the spiritual being you were in fear of having his legacy tarnished by people who didn't remember properly or interpreted your actions the wrong way. Bottom line, you shouldn't worry about what happens after death because every other alternative is a shitplace for your soul.
 
Well, what people usually mean when they say that is that you get to pass on your values and morals to your children, and potentially even some of your interests. They may not be exactly like you, but that can go a long way.

I think death blows. However, one could see death as an absolute method of balancing the scale; not even the most brilliant hero or the most feared tyrant can survive old age. If we were all immortal, that might not work very well. If we simply didn't age, we might possess a greater fear of accidents, illness and murder. If we simply lived for far longer than we do now, we might find the inevitability of death all the more traumatising.

I just don't want my consciousness to leave. Life is, by definition, everything there ever will be, and having no choice but to lose it all at some point is cruel.
 
Well, we're probably all inevitably going to fade away - regardless of just being forgotten over time, or because human survival likely isn't infinite. Either way when you're comfy in your coffin (which'll stop existing at some point too, nice) it doesn't really matter. It's kind of a bittersweet idea to me - on one hand it's a very crushing thought to come to terms with the idea that everything and everyone around you is going to disappear, on the other hand it inspires kind of a "make the best of it" philosophy right?

Especially being agnostic (leaning towards atheism?) myself there's always the feeling that if I decide I'm not going to bother to pursue a certain thing, then it's just never going to happen and that experience will always just remain a concept to me. You really have to think about what path you wanna trod down because you can't try another one later. It's why I'm feeling very tied up with myself right now, adult life is less than a year away and I just don't know where I wanna head, what to study, I don't even really have a hobby specific enough to stir me into a direction. I just don't wanna regret the decision and have a shitload of debt keeping me down for years. :roll:

As far as living forever goes, not for me personally. I'd go for for a very extended lifespan, but I do tend to feel like there needs to be some sort of finality in a sense? I feel like I could come to terms with death if I felt like I've done what there is to do for me. I always thought it was interesting how Tolkien in Lord of The Rings at one point commented on Gollum as being like this character who'd outgrown his own time period and people and was just going on into this ever developing and changing world. But life is too short, you spend 20 years making it to adulthood and then 20 years making it to not living paycheck-to-paycheck and then you hit your midlife crisis and that's all if you don't end up under a truck or tying yourself to a rope before any of that. There's not really any resolution to it I think, other than just plain "do your best and be yourself" advice. Travel or take up a hobby you really love or whatever.

The only thought that really scares me is the idea that eventually that kind of mindset doesn't apply anymore and at some point you might be alive but at a stage when you feel too fragile to go anywhere, too old to pursue big ideas and too close to death to think about the future - I see that a lot in my great grandmother, in her mid 90s and trying to live in the past because there's no longer a future to live towards. Just 3-4 years ago she seemed to still be so with everything and then when finally age began to really weight down on her that deterioration went so quickly it's terrifying.

Oh and, if those fucking maniacs in the offices don't do something about climate change then maybe we're right in time to die before shit really hits the fan.
 
In Germany, you won't get old-age pension before the age of 67. Working until then? I can't do that shit. This may sound like a stupid reason, but I'd rather die not being all that old instead of living on forever with my body broken and my mind exhausted.

That's not to say I'm welcoming it, but I don't think death (my own death, anyway) is a big deal. It has to happen eventually, anyway.
 
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