Our last years

End of days

In our twilight years our priorities can change, and each hour of each day becomes more precious. Youth really is wasted on the young. So many things that we thought were significant are no longer so. Whatever situation we find ourselves in, we can fight on until the bitter end. Some put more focus on what we think really matters such as our friends and family. You never know for sure when your number is up and can rarely foresee a pending accident or upcoming illness. Even if things seem to be progressing fortuitously you will undoubtedly notice your teeth beginning to rot away, your hair greying and thinning out. Clear startling signs of your mortality. As we age our health deteriorates and all the worries and cares we once had dissipate.

The aging process causes our skin to lose its elasticity inside and out. A typical death through old age commences when the acidic contents of the stomach pierces the lining unabated and enters the bloodstream. Every last drop of heroin like reserves are released in the mind allowing us to depart on quite a high. Before this though, exhaustion can set in and we tend to reach a point where we fully appreciate that there is no limit to the number of people we would like to meet, or scientific studies that we may wish to embark upon, or places we may like to visit, or wealth we want to collate or distribute, or politics that we feel inclined to amend, or how far and wide we would like to spread a message, or knowledge available to be sought, or do whatever thing that is of importance to us; acceptance of our limits is reached and the cares that we once had of the world and opportunities that it offered slide away. It is akin to returning to the time before we were born. Our unique set of preferences, affinities and abilities emerge, flourish, and then ebb away.

Mankind has collectively expanded its capability from one generation to the next. We feel sorry for individuals who have been integral in improving something, devoting a lifetime to it, but pass away well before they get to see the resultant applications of their work. Our lifespan is restricted, we can do nothing bar accept the boundary and enjoy our turn.