Jean-Paul Contemplates Death

Recent conversations with Ferg about his fearless approach to free climbing had started Jean-Paul thinking about his own mortality. Jean-Paul believed Ferg when said he had no fear death. He’d said If anything when he thought about death it had helped him live a fuller life. For Ferg death was a fact of life! Jean-Paul had never thought about death in that way. He had been bought up and educated in a way where death was rarely discussed and very much a taboo. That Ferg had somehow risen above dark thoughts about death and now used it to inform his positive approach to life impressed him. He knew it was a conversation he would return to with him.

Since chatting with Ferg, his own death had started to occupy his mind in an interesting way. Not in a morbid or suicidal way. Death was suddenly asking bigger questions about his life in ways he hadn’t considered before. He thought our culture was one which was not good at facing the subject of death. Normally death only enters our lives when someone close to us has died. Only then do we consider our feelings around loss, grief and bereavement. A time when those feelings may well get mixed up with our own vulnerability. He wondered why he hadn’t been encouraged to think about these things while he is young, in good health, less vulnerable and more able to handle conversations about such a fundamental subject.

Jean Paul could see how our relationship with death is shaped culturally and often as well through our religion or faith. It was interesting for him to think in that sense it is almost assumed rather than considered or discussed. Culture and and ethnicity often mean any conversations around death tend to take place from a particular point of view or perspective, depending where in the world it might be happening. Jean-Paul realised now how the subject of death had been something missing from his education. It was something he would actively remedy. From here on he decided he would no longer shy away from conversations about the subject. He started to think about how little he knew about how his friends or family felt about death. It seemed likely there were important conversations fo be had although he was fully aware there never seemed to be a good time to do this! There is always someone facing or close to news of death, a tragedy or bereavement. It would be a challenge and he would need to tread carefully if any of the conversations are to be mutually beneficial.

First Jean-Paul needed to broaden his understanding on the subject and come to terms with what death means to him. He suspected that his relationship with death might change over time. This was an exciting prospect and meant he felt sure in his conviction that he wanted to keep death present in his life and in his conversations. He was excited by taking a new look at death and beginning to see how his understanding of all things relating to it might help provide him with a fresh outlook on life. The more he thought about it the more questions he had. Just starting to think about death in a new light somehow felt liberating. He knew it was early days and he needed to seek out some new reading material on the subject. Ferg mentioned that he had attended a Death Cafe and it was a place that had help shape his own understanding of death. Jean-Paul thought this might be a good place for him to start and he set about finding his nearest Death Cafe…

https://deathcafe.com – Death Cafes exist world wide so if you are interested do click the link to discover how they started and to find one near you