Life is short..

We always hear people say, "Life is short"..

..but how many of us actually ponder upon the meaning of these few words so commonly uttered by many?

Today, i heard the news about a doctor's death which took place last Tuesday. She was also one of our clinical lecturers, and i vividly recall the last class she took which was about epilepsy. She wasn't old. In fact, i believe she was quite young - probably around her late 20s or early 30s, judging from her appearance. She did not appear to be morbidly sick as well. What could be the cause for her death? It was told that she fell down suddenly in the hospital. I did not know what actually happened or if she was suffering from any illness.

Yes, life is short. We can be alive today and gone tomorrow. If we look at it this way, we can invariably say that life is indeed short. An old lady died from illness; a gentleman died from old age. After living 90 years of rich and full life, do we say life is short then? 5 years, 15 years, 35 years, 60 years, 90 years...does it matter how long a person lives to say that life is short?

Everyone knows that death will inevitably come one day but no one knows when. It is something that cannot be changed. That is what makes the present moment, right now, matters the most. How we live, how we love, how we cry and laugh and work. Each and every moment to be cherished and to be thankful for. How many times do we express our gratefulness to God, simply for what we have now, rather than asking for things?

All these things come into my mind every time i hear of someone's death. Especially of someone i know. I figured, whenever there are deaths, most people tend to recall how the deceased had lived their lives, how they had touched other people's lives, in both small and big ways. There may be sadness and grief, but it also causes many people to reflect on the times spent together..and for some, it arises a feeling of regret for times not well spent. No matter how, death always has an impact with a ripple effect - it may affect some people more so than the others. It is not too much to say that death makes us human.

In retrospect, i hope i had been a good student, cousin, friend to all those beautiful people whom I had once crossed paths with and whom now have moved on to a better place. Our encounters may not have always been pleasant, but i am thankful for the opportunity to know them and to have been part of their lives in little ways, as they have been part of mine. My prayers are that may their souls rest in peace. Amen.

Life is short. So let's live a full and meaningful life.