In reading the essay, I thought of Mary Oliver asking in The Summer Day, "What do you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" For me, the five daily recollections are true and profound, and I plan to make a copy of them and keep it nearby to reread. I became aware of death in a personal and intimate way when my father died, when my best friend died instantly and unexpectedly of a brain hemorrhage, when other friends have died, and when relatives have died, each of which deaths shook me to various depths. The deaths of other people my age heighten my awareness of death. Reminding myself of the five daily recollections -- that I am growing old, that sickness is part of my life, that I will die (drop this body as I've come to think of it), that everything is temporary, and my actions very much define me -- help me to remember to pay attention to my actions, to love and enjoy, and to not waste any of this precious and brief life.
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On Dec 13, 2016ryandavid wrote :
" If one truly grasps that all that is born
will end in death ,
then there will be love ." Buddah
On Dec 10, 2016 david doane wrote :
In reading the essay, I thought of Mary Oliver asking in The Summer Day, "What do you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" For me, the five daily recollections are true and profound, and I plan to make a copy of them and keep it nearby to reread. I became aware of death in a personal and intimate way when my father died, when my best friend died instantly and unexpectedly of a brain hemorrhage, when other friends have died, and when relatives have died, each of which deaths shook me to various depths. The deaths of other people my age heighten my awareness of death. Reminding myself of the five daily recollections -- that I am growing old, that sickness is part of my life, that I will die (drop this body as I've come to think of it), that everything is temporary, and my actions very much define me -- help me to remember to pay attention to my actions, to love and enjoy, and to not waste any of this precious and brief life.