Death's lessons

From its beginning, this year has been one full of loss, the loss of loved ones. As the Cabrini community readied itself for the new academic year, the death of Alan Bunch brought fall preparations to a halt. We pondered life's brevity and death's finality. We found ourselves asking, "Why take someone so young and full of potential?" While we worked through our own grief, death visited us once more: this time it took Julian Mejia. Why did death call on us so frequently?

Shaking our heads, we, the witnesses to life and death· s cruelty, questioned life's meaning and wondered when death would end his wrath on our college.

Ruthlessly, he continued his missions and stole more of our loved ones from our lives and hearts. In the end, he had seized an administrator, a professor's parent. and students' parents. Proceeding with his duty, death rendered us empty and painstricken. Now in the time of the year when life begins anew, we may learn that death, while taking away an enormous part of us, also afforded us certain lessons.

When my students read a complex piece of literature, I will ask them, "ls there a deeper meaning to all of this?" To our community I ask, "What can we learn from the sadness of losing someone close to us?" Each of us learns a different meaning. Yet, some common themes do surface when we analyze the situation. The death of a loved one offers these common themes: death gives birth to life, life is only a temporary state and life must be cherished and experienced. To understand more fully, we must contemplate each theme's meaning and lesson.

How can death give birth to life? There seems to be a contradiction in this question, but it is accurate and true. In death, we lose a person. However, we sometimes gain a stronger appreciation for that person.

The void created by that person's absence allows us to focus on our lives. We must learn to live without that person physically, but he or she still exists in our hearts. That person's spirit coexists with our own thoughts, feelings, hopes, memories and dreams. In life, loved ones touch us in the depths of our souls and being. This touch will never erode or fade because it is the caress full of love. This caress continues through time.

As we face adversity, we may find courage or comfort m the words or actions of one who has left us. Each person touches another whether he or she realizes it at the time. The love of a person does not cease in death.

It flourishes deep within his or her friends and family. Our responsibility is to show that love and to share a person's life with others-allowing him or her to live once more. But this is only one lesson we learn from death.

One of the most difficult lessons is the following: life is only a temporary state. We will not-I repeat-will not physically live forever. The grim reaper never takes personal days or vacation time. Yet, the threat of his visit should not worry us. Instead, it should inspire us. We need to recognize life's fragility and brevity. We should not concern ourselves with the time or date of our end, but we should live life each day as if it were our last. Because death does not share his schedule with us, we do not know when he will visit.

Thus, the time has come to ask ourselves some crucial questions. If life is brief, why do we hold grudges against people? If life will not last forever, why do we keep putting our dreams on hold? And, if life could end at anytime, why do we leave those special words unsaid? Reebok once told us, "Life is short. Play hard." I propose we recognize life ·s morality and begin our !iv-

by Steve Murray resident director

ing now! Because our time is limited, we should end our little battles with other persons, charge on towards the fulfillment of our dreams, and bestow loving words on those we adore. Remember, we only exist temporarily. We must not waste a precious second or moment. Once we accept the transient state of life, we can focus on death ·s last lesson.

Life must be experienced and cherished. View life as a gift from a store that offers no refunds. We must take advantage of this precious gift and enjoy it like it is the last one we shall receive. This gift has an expiration date and its date must not cause anxiety. With this being said, we must ask ourselves: What is the purpose for my living? If I am not happy, what can I do RIGHT NOW to change that? Or simply, what can I do to get more out of this life? We must learn to LIVE.

Living means trying new things, taking risks. and experiencing people. I suggest we try to make memories each and every second, each and every minute, each and every day. And as we experience life, we can also cherish it. We ought to appreciate those in our lives, celebrate even the smallest events and squeeze the potential out of every situation. With this new inspiration, we unwrap and experience the gift of life.

Like our deceased loved ones, we show love and share our lives with the world. Our actions, gestures of kindness and gentle words will someday inspire and comfort others. Death teaches us that people never completely leave us-they dwell within us. Death also educates us about our own mortality and the reasons for living. Although its lessons do not comfort us in our time of despair, they do remind and motivate us to appreciate what we do have, and also help us to treasure our priceless gift: the