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THE POSITIVE SIDE OF DEATH (27 02 03) By John J. Moelaert "It is death that is the guide of our life, and our life has no goal but death." MAURICE MAETERLINK Death is very much misunderstood and even less appreciated in our society. That's strange, because as Francis Bacon put it: "It is as natural to die as to be born, but men fear death, as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural fear in children is increased with tales, so is the other." The best way to appreciate the importance of death is to try to imagine our world without it. For example, without death, tyranny would be endless and suffering would intensify, because brutal tyrants like Genghis Kahn, Hitler and Stalin would be with us forever. Without death, but with continued reproduction, there would be standing room only on this already overpopulated planet. We have to question the sanity of scientists who are striving for immortality by keeping people alive by various means, including transplanted organs as well as genetically and mechanically produced organs and other body parts. Without death there would be no incentive to rush things. Any task could wait till the next day, year, century, millennium. Death, or at least the threat or possibility of it, motivates us. As anyone who has been unemployed or on vacation too long knows, too much time on one's hands makes life very boring. Eternal life would be unbearable. Suffering comes in countless forms and when it becomes intolerable death is the welcome stranger that brings an end to it. Thomas Browne wrote in Religio Medici: "We all labour against our own cure, for death is the cure of all diseases." Many things would be impossible without death. For example, murder, retirement, life insurance, the funeral business, near-death experiences, capital punishment and so on. Without death religion would have to undergo major revisions if it were to survive at all. Life is the epitome of brevity. Death is the quintessence of eternity. To grasp how short life is, measure it against the length of death and you will realize you owe it to yourself to make the best of each day. Don't fret about the past, for it can't be changed and is only good for one thing: to learn from it. Don't worry about the future, for no one knows its mysteries. Only the present affords you a measure of control. So use it wisely. Time is a priceless and irreplaceable commodity, so don't waste any. Remember: life's today is yesterday's tomorrow and soon will be tomorrow's yesterday, but death has no tomorrow--only yesterdays. So make each day count for your own fulfillment and the betterment of others for the world is only as bad as each one allows it to be. As William Hazlitt wrote On the Love of Life: "Our repugnance to death increases in proportion to our consciousness of having lived in vain." Death destroys all dreams and stokes the fires of fear. Birth makes it inescapable. Everyone should contemplate the full spectrum of life and the inevitability of death before bringing children into this world and thereby subjecting them to both.