The Art of Dying

Although I have not experienced death but I can imagine it. I vividly remember back in 2010 before my operation for my bowel cancer. I visited a Buddhist monk a week before the operation. He asked me as followed:

Do I have a will? Do I owe any debt from anyone? Do I have special things (example: say sorry) to say to anyone? Do I have anything that worry/bother me?

I told him I did not have a will but I will write one. I don’t owe anyone money. I could not record I have done anything to make someone upset. Only one thing that I could not let go is my parents which the monk told me to make a vow for them. For my children, I have a good husband who will look after them. Really I have nothing to be attached to and could not let go.

All of the above questions help my mind go calm when facing my own death.  If we are well prepared then we would not be afraid of dying. We must face it, accept it and deal with it. Dying is part of our life and if we know this is a normal process, we can accept it.

Now that I am ready but are my family members ready? We need to let them know our decisions. For example I told my children if I am unconscious or my heart is not responding, I don’t want any electric shock CPR. I have nominated who is my power of attorney and guardianship.

When we are born, death is at the other end waiting for us. So if we know this, we can live our life fully instead of wasting it. Once we have prepared for it to come, we can enjoy every moment of our life. We see each day or each moment is a gift to us so please fill it with glory.