The thing you avoid most is the one thing that could wake you up.
If there's one taboo still standing in our open, free society, it's death.
We talk easily about relationships, sex, work, money. The moment mortality comes up, we fall silent.
Maybe because it's so hard to face. It's a mirror that forces us to truly look at ourselves.
As Kierkegaard wrote:
“Death says: I exist. Whoever wishes to learn from me, let him come to me.”
Søren Kierkegaard – Danish philosopher ¹
Hard as it is to face, death can shake us awake. Knowing we're mortal can bring out the best in us, if we dare to look at it.
And yet, we'd rather avoid it. We look away, put it off, pretend it isn't there. Until, suddenly, it is.
That strategy rarely works. Kierkegaard explains why:
“A general reflection on death only confuses thought, just as wanting to experience something in general does.”
Søren Kierkegaard – Danish philosopher ²
Because death isn't an end, it's a mirror.
It shows you clearly what's truly valuable, what genuinely deserves your time and attention.
It brings you back to you. To the person you are beneath all the layers.
That's why death, in a strange way, can be the ultimate wake-up call.
Are you ready to listen?
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1 Kierkegaard (1845), 2011, p. 92.
2 Kierkegaard (1845), 2011, p. 115.
