A person’s lasts moments are measured by breaths. They are sometimes long. Sometimes short. Sometimes too long in between. Sometimes there is pain. Other times there is none. It’s like being underwater and trying to hold your breath. You are drowning. You are desperate to get to the air but it just won’t come. You fight and you fight and you fight. You can see the light. You can see your breath but it just won’t come. Nothing will come. It’s the end. You wait and you wait until you can’t breathe anymore. There is nothing left. So, you just watch. You watch until there’s nothing left to do but close your eyes. You close your eyes until the peace comes. And then…you’re gone.
Death is scary.
The loved ones left behind endure grief. And anger. And sadness. And usually more anger. Death is unavoidable. Everyone, one day, young or old, will die. Sometimes it’s expected. Other times it’s a surprise. But no matter what, it always makes it feel like the world is crashing down around you. Life seems to keep moving on around you. Your expected to keep your life moving on.
But what if you don’t?
People die every day but, it’s still not something to get used to. How could anyone get used to it?
Does a person know when their last days are? To sense when the time has come is truly astounding. It makes you look at the world in a different light. It makes you appreciate this thing we call life just a little more. It makes you stop and smell the roses or that fresh pot of coffee in the morning. It makes you hug your children and your grandchildren that much tighter. It makes you sip that ice-cold glass of wine like it’s the best thing on earth. It makes that stupid cooking show on TV that much more interesting. It makes the music notes floating from the old boom box that much more beautiful. To see things for one last time. To hear things for one last time. To touch things for one last time. What a thing.
A passing puts life into perspective. It makes you cherish that annoying alarm clock that goes off every day. It’s makes you appreciate that first sip of coffee in the morning. It makes you stop and listen to the birds chirping in the early hours. It makes you hold your family that much closer. We truly only have this one life to live. Why not make it a good one?
Life is something. Life can be long. Life can be short. Life can be hard. Life can be easy.
Life is life.
*All photos are salt prints, made with salt water and silver.