Death on TV is not an uncommon occurrence. It could be real, as in reported deaths on the news, or fake, as in a television show or movie. Death has become such an everyday occurrence in life that we never take much account of it, unless it is of someone we know (or a fictional character we love). That being said, who has time to care for all the deaths there are in the world? When is the last time a person cried over the death of a single soldier, or of the thousands killed in Syria, or of any number of deaths reported when they were heard over the news? The most common reaction is a small "oh, wow, that is terrible," but a full-on torrential cry? Unlikely, unless perhaps you saw a picture or a video of the deaths in question.
Having attended more than my fair share of funerals at my age, I've stopped crying at funerals and for death. I've found, much too often, that people are too fast to mourn the loss of a person rather than celebrate the person that they were. For some, the mourning process is natural; imagining life without a person who has been so influential, so stable, so exciting, is daunting. So, instead of mourning that person and what they brought out in you, why not be that person that they made you be when they were around? That person you feel that you can no longer be because they are no longer around?
Along with that, I'd rather have people happy at my funeral than crying. I want people to dance and sing, to jump with joy and enjoy themselves. I don't really care if they're doing it because they're glad I'm dead or because I've asked them to, but life is too damn short to spend it sad. I am going to demand that there be dancing at my funeral, which may or may not include the chicken dance.
Yep.
DF
Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Monday, April 2, 2012
Monday, April 12, 2010
Zoon Politikon
For those of you who don't know, the Polish president died in a plane crash over the weekend. What I didn't realize was how much it affected those not even living in Poland.
A woman who works at the dining hall is originally Polish, obviously living in the US now. I was talking to her today, and I asked how her weekend was. She said that it was difficult for her because of the death of the president, and what I found was astounding was that she really felt anguish because of his death. I saw that as soon as she brought up the president, her demeanor became suddenly sadder. This was fascinating to me.
To me, the notion of someone grieving over the death of a political figure that one does not have to perfunctorily follow is alien. The US has been racked by overzealous partisanship and extreme polarization, mostly culminating in the fact that if, for example, President Obama were to suddenly die, many people would be glad. Sarah Palin, for one, would likely be ecstatic that he was gone, though she obviously wouldn't make the fact explicit. Even I would have been glad to see Dick Cheney keel over during his tenure in office, though we all know that he technically can't die because he doesn't have a heart. This raises an alarming question for me: are we, as the Greeks described, still the political animal, or have we become the intransigent animal? Even more, have we reduced the actual act of politics to one's religious and/or social beliefs to the point where a politician's actions no longer truly matter?
To end on a somewhat lighter note, here's a good bit of Germany philosophy vs. Greek philosophy:
That's all for now,
Das Flüg
A woman who works at the dining hall is originally Polish, obviously living in the US now. I was talking to her today, and I asked how her weekend was. She said that it was difficult for her because of the death of the president, and what I found was astounding was that she really felt anguish because of his death. I saw that as soon as she brought up the president, her demeanor became suddenly sadder. This was fascinating to me.
To me, the notion of someone grieving over the death of a political figure that one does not have to perfunctorily follow is alien. The US has been racked by overzealous partisanship and extreme polarization, mostly culminating in the fact that if, for example, President Obama were to suddenly die, many people would be glad. Sarah Palin, for one, would likely be ecstatic that he was gone, though she obviously wouldn't make the fact explicit. Even I would have been glad to see Dick Cheney keel over during his tenure in office, though we all know that he technically can't die because he doesn't have a heart. This raises an alarming question for me: are we, as the Greeks described, still the political animal, or have we become the intransigent animal? Even more, have we reduced the actual act of politics to one's religious and/or social beliefs to the point where a politician's actions no longer truly matter?
To end on a somewhat lighter note, here's a good bit of Germany philosophy vs. Greek philosophy:
That's all for now,
Das Flüg
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