Lately, I have been struggling a lot with change. I’ve never been a big fan of change. I was stubborn to change when I moved to South Carolina from my beloved hometown, I was stubborn to change when I got my first job and it changed my life completely, and I was certainly stubborn to change when I moved four hours away from home to come to college. I was watching an episode of “Parks and Recreation” this week, and a man named Ron tells Ron Swanson, who is struggling to cope with the death of a friend, that the only consistent thing in life is change. For those of us who are stubborn to change, such a truth is sometimes hard to swallow.
Death, as Ron was struggling with, is a huge, slap-in-the-face change that everyone has to face at some point in their life, and for some reason right now, it seems like death is everywhere. Cherished musician David Bowie passed away, and just days later beloved actor Alan Rickman passed as well. Likewise, here I am writing this having found out just yesterday that my precious grandfather finally passed away due to the cancer that he finally succumbed to. It sucks, right? Death is the biggest, most heart-breaking change that one can face. Someone that you and many others loved and cherished is gone forever, and it leaves a hole in your heart that not even 15 mini-chocolate chip muffins can fill (yes, I have eaten 15 mini-chocolate chip muffins today, and I plan on eating more).
So how do you deal with the death of a loved one, the death of a beloved celebrity, or the death of one or hundreds of people that you don’t even know? Death is scary. It’s absolutely downright terrifying. Maybe you believe that everything in life happens for a reason. Maybe some die to teach us lessons, to teach us how to love or to teach us how to let go. Maybe you believe that there is no heaven or hell and that once you pass you’re dead and gone, or maybe you believe that our souls go somewhere else on this earth. I don’t know what you believe, and I certainly do not have all of the answers either. No matter what you believe, my cousin posted something on Facebook regarding my grandfather’s passing that put a smile on my face: “Though he’ll be greatly missed here, the heavenly choir’s bass section just got a whole lot stronger and funnier.” What a nice picture, isn’t it?
Everyone copes with death differently. Some people try to stay positive and remember all of the loving memories they had together, some drink themselves sick and stay in bed for days, some are just confused and don’t know what to do -- that’s how I’m feeling about all of the death that seems to be lurking around. Who’s next? I think one of the most unsettling parts about death it that it makes you realize that any of us could be next. Death could beat you next.
So, I guess all you can do is cherish who you have while they’re around. Take in the lessons that they’re here to teach us. David Bowie taught us about music, gender and self-expression. Alan Rickman taught us many lessons in the characters that he played. And though many of you never knew my grandfather, he taught me how to be kind and loving, and that horrible puns are actually really funny. You’ve heard every cliché “live life like there’s no tomorrow” line, but it’s the truth. You never know when your last day is, there really is no day but today. From me to you, make today your best day.
This one’s for you, Papa Earl.
