“The ultimate degree of treating death courageously, and the most natural one, is to face it not only without amazement but without worry, extending the ordinary course of your life right into death.” I have to admit, I never think about death unless writers force it upon me. While I attend to my health carefully, it isn’t with death in mind, rather with avoiding a life filled with agony, doctor’s visits and prescriptions with miles long side effects.
So would my apathy about death constitute courage or am I required to obsess over it? I believe the classical philosophers embraced the obsession. But what a self-centered attitude that is, to prioritize the death of one over cares about the living.
Today, that obsession takes on different names, usually regarding legacies. These can be wonderful things when people think about leaving behind resources for others. But I have no respect for those who care about creating “generational wealth” or, worse, a locus of power. And if the time ever comes when there’s a revolution against the oligarchs, I hope everyone who prioritizes missions to mars over helping the living are the first to get their heads on pikes. Let that be their legacy.