Can We Imagine Something Better?

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Can We Imagine Something Better?

Asimilar thing happened to a man in ancient Jerusalem. He was the author of Ecclesiastes, a book in the Bible. Tradition identifies him as King Solomon, famed for his staggering wealth and brilliant intellect. But the book never actually names the author, instead referring to him simply as “the Teacher.” He was a

descendant of Israel’s King David, and he lived during a great crisis that brought untold misery to the lives of all the people around him. He felt The Teacher enormously frustrated that figured that, he could not do anything to even if he had it all and could change this, despite his intellect change the and glorious royal heritage. All lives of others, he could do was imagine what it it would all be would be like to have the power meaningless, to change things. because in the And this is actually what he end, death did. He conducted a thought would have the experiment. He imagined what final say over it would be like if he could put everyone. all the kings of his illustrious ancestry together, rolling all their accomplishments, wealth, and wisdom into one. He figured that it would give him a lot of pleasure, make him very famous, and perhaps even make a difference to others. But there was one thing that put a pin in his entire imaginative

experiment: death. The Teacher figured that, even if he had it all and could change the lives of others, it would all be meaningless, because in the end, death would have the final say over everyone.

Many of us today live comfortable lives. We have pleasant living quarters with plumbed-in water, electricity to power our appliances and gadgets, airconditioning to keep us cool or warm as the seasons demand, televisions to entertain us, and the internet to keep us connected to the rest of the world. Some of us probably didn’t mind the shutdown of our society due to the Coronavirus.

Others of us, though, will feel the pressure acutely, as we suddenly face the possible loss of our livelihood and lifestyle. Yet, not one of us will ever escape death. For some among us, the virus will come to take its toll. For others, we may live for decades to come. But the stark reality is that, no matter who we are, how much we have, or how expansive our imagination is—whether we are rich or poor, sick or healthy, or whatever the colour of our skin—every last one of us will succumb to death. We don’t know whether it will come in the form of a virus, an accident, or

simply old age. But it will come. Like the Teacher, we might be able to imagine what it’s like to have it all, but death stares every one of us in the face. Death doesn’t blink. Death doesn’t look away. Death always comes.