My uplifting title is the tag line for the fifth and penultimate season of HBO's show Six Feet Under. The show ran from 2001-2005 and I never saw it during its original run. I have however, through the magic of DVD, watched all five seasons in a relatively short amount of time (4 months). It may be the short time span, but this show has had a huge effect on me.
Death is not something I think about often, but this show has made me think about it and try to imagine what those situations are like. I know, I know, it's a TV show and it can't prepare you for real life. That is true, but it can make you THINK about real life. It made me go through the process of what I would want done with me when I die. Quite frankly, it was a sad prospect. Even worse is what you are leaving behind.
They say funerals are for the living and not the dead. I completely agree. I don't think I fear death, but I do fear those I care about dying. I couldn't imagine any of my immediate family dying or any of my close friends. And don't even get me started on Kristi. It would be truly awful to lose her. It makes me tear up just thinking about it. But then I remember that it is natural and really one of the few things in life we are guaranteed.
All in all, the show has not prepared me to deal with death. It has prepared me to deal with life. During the run of the show there was really no religious undertone or message. The only messages were to be happy and live. They summed it up in one conversation:
Grieving wife: "Why do people have to die?"
Funeral Director: "To make life worth living."
I will take that line with me for the rest of my life, which I hope is long, rich, and filled with hope and love.
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