A second life? Thoughts on the idea of continuous transition
What does a life look like? Which phases do you go through? What defines a person at a certain age?
I want to tell you the story of one person …
… it begins with a childhood that is remembered very positively. A life on the outskirts, a lot of time in the garden and in the fresh air, some trips to unknown places and eventually to the sea. Despite some difficult times, life has always been a little more comfortable, a little more luxurious over time. With a new life partner, some family rifts and differences came to light. But it also paved the way for a very own life, studies, new challenges. Finally came the time of self-realization through independent development and development of one’s own dreams and ideas. Soon it became too cramped in their own four walls and both partners realized themselves in a larger apartment. The desire for something of one’s own finally led to a small house with a small garden. Many projects have been started and implemented; others fell by the wayside. At some point the zenith of what was possible was passed and the desire for more simplicity, a manageable life, more travel, more time for beautiful things arose. Eventually they all found themselves in a little home away from the hustle and bustle of the city…
An entire life story could look something like this. Maybe I could tell my own story in this way as well. But I’m not old at all.
the funeral business
In my relatively short time as a funeral musician, I have heard many such stories. Maybe there were one or the other detail, certain preferences and certain names of close relatives. But often not much more was said about a person’s entire life. Although a memorial service cannot necessarily recapitulate every detail of a long life, the briefly summarized version usually seemed very sad to me.
Was that really all that made this person special? Was this life really so insignificant, so unspectacular? Shouldn’t there be more depth, more meaning and more worth mentioning in even the simplest things in life?
Within no more than half an hour, a period of mostly 60 to 80 years was gathered there and then disappeared into the ground in the form of a small container.
But maybe this last farewell doesn’t play such a big role, but rather the many small and large encounters and events before. Maybe it just needs a more suitable place in our midst, in the middle of life, to say goodbye to a valued and loved one…
Daily rebirth
Maybe it’s just important to take as much as possible out of life. For this it is important to internally look past the many small and large mistakes, the misunderstandings, the differences and quarrels and prefer to classify them where they belong. This opens up a view of all the things that really make a person. I think that you can apply this concept to other people as well as to yourself. Every day we have the opportunity to decide how to deal with the person we were yesterday. What do we take with us? What are we letting go What helps us to get ahead in life?
My perspective on my life from the beginning of this text may sound a bit strange. But it opens up the idea of a new beginning, a transition to a new, a second life. This view stands above the limitations that a conventional view suggests to us. How often have we heard things like: “I can’t do that anymore at that age”, or “I used to… but now…”.
Time is an exciting thing, but I don’t think it should be viewed as a purely passive flow for us, but rather as a library full of interesting books to learn from, which can amaze and inspire us.
Frames and perspectives
Ultimately, these frames, which we stretch around any time window, are often just images according to the specifications of others – pre-made standard sizes for everyone. And the first thing you can do to stop being everyone is to dissolve these frames. Build your own frames, take them off again and put them back together again and again. As I did at the beginning of this post. But it doesn’t always have to be such a big frame. It is sufficient for the beginning to simply stand on a chair or lie down on the floor. Next you can try to imagine that a small room is a huge hall or vice versa.
It doesn’t take genius or talent – it’s like learning to juggle (or an instrument), success depends solely on the effort you put in.
Explore your own treasure chest of opportunities
So imagine if you could start a new life today. Your life so far would not be a block against your leg, but a treasure trove of skills, opportunities, knowledge and experiences that you can use.
The desire to start over is a very old one and can be found in many supernatural ideas such as reincarnation. But often these concepts come with obstacles such as a new form (animal rebirth) or lack of knowledge of the past. The possibilities though that life offers you every day may seem tiny at first glance, but in their continuity they are more powerful with each passing day.
Ultimately, if you look at infinity/eternal life simply as ignorance about your own end, then we always live forever and can get the best out of every moment.
And so as not to let this seem like some kind of magic, I’ll take a first step right now and enjoy the view from the roof of my van …
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