Mere Mortals

Photographer: Rohan from SLR Memories

Mortality is a conversation I know we humans dread. We find it negative, scary, pessimistic and the list of negative connotations goes on.  However, if you ask me, I think it's a conversation that should be had especially with our loved ones.  Why with our loved ones? First of all, I don't know if it's only me that has this feeling, but don't you sometimes feel that certain people can't die? As if you cannot literally fathom life without them. I did. I mean, I remember the feeling I had when I lost my mum - aged 9 and I literally could not believe/accept it. I thought my life was all a big show airing somewhere on the television and my mum would walk on set and say 'oh, that was a good scene'. And 14 years later I'm secretly still waiting for her to walk on set. With time passing after losing my mother, I somehow got accustomed to forgetting about mortality until last year when I got a rude awakening after the sudden demise of my then boyfriend. In my eyes these were two people that I could never think of losing, but it happened because death does not care about who you love or who means the world to you. It most definitely will visit and that is one thing we know for sure. But when? Most do not have the privilege of knowing. Now, what I have perceived about most humans is that we do not take our mortality seriously enough. We take our loved ones for granted without realising it, and that is one of our biggest mistakes. We think we have all the time in the world to make it right with them when we could really just do it now. Start giving your loved ones the love they deserve before it is too late. You really do not want to have thoughts such as 'I should've', 'I would've', 'I could've', and so on for the rest of your life. We know tomorrow is not promised so if I were you, I would do my loved ones justice by giving them the companionship they deserve in this lifetime.