Greeting Death

It is the great fortune and misfortune of mankind that, usually from a very early age, we are made aware that our lives are finite; we will eventually die. With this awareness of our own mortality comes the knowledge that those we love, whose companionship we greatly value, will also die. So, we can often be instilled with a fear of dying and/or of being left alone. The counter side of this is that we are thus given time and opportunity to reflect on our mortality. This opportunity can either be taken to relish the prospect of embracing every day or wallowing in a pool of depression, wondering what the point of life truly is.

Many people (although perhaps not as many as in past generations) find comfort in their religion. In most religious texts, dying is viewed as a beautiful achievement - to reach the afterlife is seen as the soul's transition towards fulfilling it's potential. However, there is an increasingly large portion of society that does not practice any form of religion. Either they are atheists or they feel that making time for their religion is not a priority. Despite the focus subject matter of this website, there is no religious agenda here.

Adapted from: Joy Johnson, 'Keys To Helping Children Deal With Death And Grief', (Barron's Educational Series, Inc., 1999)
Harold Kushner, 'When Bad Things Happen To Good People', (Random House, 1987)