among the living.

I woke this morning to the latest on MSNBC.

Bernie Mac died.
One of the few trees left, that provided a seat and shade for the soldiers at The Battle of Gettysburg, suffered irreparable damage.
Russia and Georgia are fighting; bombs are blowing innocent lives to pieces.

After finishing the series "Six Feet Under", and experiencing what was, arguably, the best season finale for any series I have taken the time to invest myself in, I was reminded of unavoidable, and forgettable, every life on this earth ends.

It's easy to forget simply because we are alive. If we are alive, we are greeted each morning with breath. What's the point of thinking about not breathing when we are? We don't have to try. We don't have to put forth effort. We just breathe. I usually give no notice to being thankful for that breath, because it just happens.

But then sometimes it doesn't.

I am not one of those people that thinks we should live each day as if it was our last. That's depressing. I don't want to wake up each day and think to myself, "well, this could be it! I might not make it through. I better do everything I have ever wanted before the sunset!"

I just want to be honest with myself. I want to love the people I come in contact with well. I want to be kind, and not neglect doing the things that bring me joy. I want to be thankful, content, confident, present, aware.

I am too feeble of a human and writer to tackle the subject of death. And I don't want to. I would rather tackle the subject of life. And tackle life itself.

It's not the inevitably of death that makes me feel more alive. It's the feeling of heat on my body when my skin sticks to the seat of a really hot car. It's the rush that goes through my lungs when I breathe in freezing air. It's the image of my body laying in the floor, resting, regaining strength after an incredibly challenging run. It's the feeling of hot fresh coffee making its way past the flavor sensors of my mouth, down whatever part of my throat allows liquid to pass through. It's a long, carefree walk in the pouring rain. It's the things that I do and experience when I am living, walking, breathing that make me feel more alive.

I don't want to tackle the subject of death. I would rather tackle the subject of life. And tackle life itself.