The Meaning of Life is That it Stops

The meaning of life is that it stops.

One of the cards in The Death Deck asks if you would want to live forever if you could. Most people answer no. Some of the reasons are because their family and friends would still die or they have concerns about what quality of life they would have.

And, on a deeper, existential level, people typically feel that once they reach a ripe old age (if they are lucky enough to do so), that they will feel tired and worn down from the stress of day-to-day life.

I see this often with hospice patients that are over ninety years old. Sometimes before. Their significant others and other family members have died as have their friends. There’s less television or other media content that they can relate to. The world has changed so much since they were born and they have had to adapt time and time again.

They are tired.

I often wonder, what would life feel like if we didn’t die? Honestly, the thought makes me very, very tired.

We are not meant to live forever. We are meant to know that our time is finite. That the amount of warm July nights chatting with a friend in the backyard is limited. That our 80th birthday is special because it’s monumental, and also, we know that time is winding down.

That is what makes life wonderful and important. It will stop.