Two people I knew only tangentially, passed recently, and it highlighted the fragility and temporary nature of life. Both men had visible physical ailments, and both of them were nasty and conniving to the people around them.
While I didn't know them well, I did ask one if he believed in the afterlife, and if he was concerned about any ramifications connected to the way he treated people. He was dismissive about any possible consequences and completely unconcerned about whatever legacy he left behind.
Me on the other hand, I found myself deeply affected by the way my older sister first explained what death was to me when I was a little boy. She put it this way:
"Dying is when you go to sleep, and you never wake up..."
I got it immediately, and started thinking about my legacy at a very young age.
None of us is guaranteed to see tomorrow, so I believe that we need to consider everything we do and how our actions (or the lack thereof) will live on after us.
That's why I also try to consider how the turbulence of the wake of my ship of life will roil in the waves behind me.
The goal is to leave a light but consequential touch on every person that I intersect with. Leaving a trail of bitterness and suffering behind is something I'd never want to be a part of.
Recently, I gave away some valuable things to people that needed them. The quizzical looks were paired with questions about why they were presented with such valuable gifts. "They're yours just for being the amazing individual that you are, with no strings attached" was my response.
Every day above ground is a good one. Its yet another opportunity to build a legacy which has a positive effect on others, and one that you can be proud of.
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The world you make is the world you will be reincarnated into.
It is interesting that some people cannot see past their own little world.
Their little, hellish life is all that they see, or think is important.
In many cases, it is a self imposed prison. (of course the media and commercials do not help)
To get out, you have to expand, and that includes, including other people.
The guy I was talking to was older, in a wheelchair, and had been hospitalized after a collapse he'd had in 2022. You'd have thought someone like that would feel his mortality and be reflective about how he treated others in life.
Yet.
He was still, right up to the end, visiting evil upon other people with no thought for the morrow. He absolutely delighted in the suffering of others, and having a hand in it as often as he could. Whatever happened, happened quickly as they only posted his death notice a couple of weeks ago.
I could go as suddenly as he did, and will hopefully be remembered for lightening the load of as many as I can. After all, others did the same for me.