Perfect.
I’m not wild about pain. I could do without that part. But I’ve always been quite curious about what it’s like to die. I’m not particularly afraid of it (except the possible pain part), I think it will be interesting. I can remember when I was a kid and felt the same way.
I do believe in an afterlife, so I plan to be learning a lot and having an interesting time. But even if there wasn’t one, then I just wouldn’t be around anymore to miss it.
Of course when it actually shows up I might feel quite different, right? I don’t plan on it anytime soon, I have stuff to do.
Yeh, I fear death. When I really, REALLY think about the idea of my absolute annihilation, it sickens me. I think a large part of it is regret that I’ve squandered most of my life, having been grossly dysfunctional since an early age. I wrote a post about this titled “Age, Sickness and Death: A morbid descent into angst”.
I’m absolutely terrified of the thought of those last few weeks or hours or seconds will be. After that I’m not going to know anything anymore. Thinking about makes me start panicking so I try so very hard not to think about it.
I’m an atheist. I don’t believe anything will happen to my soul or essence or whatever else they call it. I won’t be Rushgeekgirl anymore. I’ll be meat. And thinking about that also makes me feel panicky so I’ll just stop. Zoloft only carries me so far, know what I mean?
Well, if there IS an afterlife, find a way to let us know, okay, dangermom?
Remember, you’re a Doper, and we can do ANYTHING! 
Don’t know how true this is and I think it is attributable to Julian Lennon, but apparently John once told his son if he (Julian) ever saw a feather floating before him horizontally, “that will be me”.
I’m not sure how take that, because I was always under the impression that John was an agnostic or even atheist, even there at the end. So am I wrong and he had actually embraced religion at the time of his death?
Thanks
Q
I like this, a lot. Thanks for sharing it.
I’ll see what I can do, but if Houdini couldn’t manage it…
Oh, you’ll be in much pain since you’ll be burning in hell and all. :p:D
Death itself, no. Just another meat machine worn out and shutting down. The dying part scares me to death. (ha!)
I never know when this guy’s being serious or yanking my chain, and I believe that were he and I face to face, he’d deliver the line above with a deadpan expression, sending me to the nearest Bartlett’s!
Back when I was working, I was such a clown that when I said something my cow-orkers might not have known which might have been… doubtful, they’d look at me expectantly, as if they were waiting for a punchline.
My pal Johnny and I have never met (just like I’ve never met y’all) except to keep in touch via e-mail, but over the years, reading his threads and posts, I think I may have him “nailed”.
Do I John?
Thanks
Q
I fear death a lot. I’m a fairly young person (26). I just hope I make my life worth living while I’m here. I’m an extremely depressed person, so that makes it worse. My cat died yesterday, and I just wonder how it was for him to die. Was it painful? Did he actually cross into another place, like cat heaven? I’m agnostic so I think he went into an eternal sleep. I miss my little cat. Sometimes I wonder why life is so unforgiving. Why do we lose the ones we love? Why are we only here for a limited amount of time?
Pretty much my view. Before the daughter was born I was just killing time until time killed me. Now I’m trying to keep going so that I can watch over her until she grows up and can stand on her own. It’s a powerful incentive to stay alive.
This is pretty much what I would say.
But yeah, I often deadpan outrageous claims or jokes.
I remember reading once that many people who have survived commercial plane crashes said that at first they panicked, then a VERY calm pleasant feeling came over them when they gave up and knew they were going to die and accepted it.
I have always feared death and thought about it way too much, but reading that helped me a lot.
I’m not afraid of dying, I’m afraid of lingering.
And When I Die (video).
I’m sorry. If I were you, I’d be a wreck.
Put me down in the “terrified of dying” column. I’m a young guy, 30, and in reasonably good health despite obesity. I don’t expect to die any time soon.
But, as an atheist, I don’t believe in anything but oblivion after death. Every once in a while (not a lot, mind you, not an unhealthy amount, I don’t think), when my sciatica is acting up and I’m wide awake at 3am, I lie in bed and it just suddenly hits me: some day, I’m going to die. One day, I will be here, a living, breathing organism, going about a life that I’m probably not treating as preciously as I should considering the shortness of it all… One day I will be here, and the next day, I won’t. I don’t believe I’ll go to heaven or hell, I don’t believe I’ll be reincarnated, I don’t believe anything will happen to me at all. My conciousness will simply end, and whatever happens to the meat that used to be me is besides the point.
And I just can’t wrap my brain around that. I. Just. Can’t. How terrifying to simply cease to be! To disappear into, well, not silence, not blackness… just… nothing? It doesn’t seem right. it doesn’t seem like it could possibly be right, but I just can’t bring the rationally-thinking part of my mind to believe in anything else.
That’s not to mention the deep sadness of it all… Imagine all the stuff I’ll miss! All the new technology and all the great books and movies, all the huge world-changing events. The world will keep on turning, and all this fascinating stuff will keep happening… and I’m going to miss it.
Yeah. I know I have a whole life of awesome stuff ahead of me, and it’s exciting. I can’t wait to see what happens, you know, between now and then. But every once and a while… oblivion keeps me awake.
Well, that and the sciatica.
It’s hard to remember
We’re alive for the first time
It’s hard to remember
We’re alive for the last time