Originally written in Russian, it was published in 2012 on my old website. Here is the translated version.

On Death

We don’t usually talk about death. Or at least that’s how it seems to me. Don’t worry, nothing has happened. It feels like everyone is planning to live forever. There’s no other way to explain such a careless attitude towards life. I think not everyone reflects on this, and perhaps that’s a good thing for humanity as a whole. Take ants, for example. They don’t have existential crises; each one acts for the common good. Chaos would reign if every ant worried about what would happen to it individually.

The unbearable lightness of being. A good book, an interesting idea. It’s a shame I haven’t managed to finish it yet. The point is that the finiteness of life makes every moment valuable. But life never repeats itself; everything happens just once, which makes it all seem meaningless. It’s all quite intriguing.

Take samurai, for instance. They are ready to die every day. They start their day with the thought that it might be their last. And, as everyone knows, that’s what they bequeathed. There’s something to that, without a doubt.

When someone dies, people remember them and say nice things. But when someone dies, it’s already too late.

I’m familiar with Death, so far, from a distance, so everything here is probably wrong.

With respect and caution,
Alex

September 13, 2012
21:28

P.S. Completely forgot. To listen: Band of Horses - The Funeral