There is a well-known saying that proclaims that nothing in life is certain but death and taxes. The author, Daniel Defoe, is credited with first making this statement in 1726 in his The Political History of the Devil. His version was slightly unwieldy: “Things as certain as death and taxes, can be more firmly believed.”
We owe our more current and decidedly more familiar phrasing to Benjamin Franklin: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”
However we choose to say it doesn’t matter nearly as much as the simple fact that it is not only a familiar sentiment but one that almost everyone agrees to be true. We will be taxed. It is, of course, our choice whether to pay the tax bill but not doing so entails fairly dire consequences.
Death, on the other hand, comes to us all. We rarely know the time or circumstance but that it is the inevitable culmination to life is certain. We may think we can prolong the interval between birth and the transition to whatever comes after and, with good health practices and other factors in our favor, that may be the case. Nonetheless, there will come the day when this life has reached its end.
It is sometimes difficult to understand the reluctance or outright refusal to deal with end of life issues. For many people it is almost as if they believe that by not giving it any thought or making any decisions they will somehow make it not happen. Obviously, this type of denial-based thinking only adds to the individual’s fear of dying and puts them out of balance with the natural order. All living beings progress through a cycle and it is the acceptance and appreciation of the beauty of each stage that gives life much of its joy.
While it is unfortunate for the individual who is fearful of facing his immortality, it is much worse for his surviving loved ones. Putting someone in the position of being forced to make decisions involving funerals and whether to have a traditional burial or go through the process of cremation at what may be one of the most difficult times of their life is not only a cruel final gesture from the one passing on, it is entirely unnecessary.
Why waste the opportunity to forge even stronger bonds with those most important to you? Discuss your beliefs about death. Make your last wishes known so that the decisions are not left for others to have to make. You may find that planning your exit is actually a way to get in touch with some unfinished business. You may also find it to be a lot of fun and a memory that those closest to you will treasure.
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