Our society greatly fears death. We fear the death of ourselves as individuals. Strikingly, we have no trouble embracing the death of others through abortion or assisted suicide. But, no one really wants to speak about his/her own death. Unless it is thrust upon us by a loved one who inconveniently interrupts our own delusions by rudely dying. 

Industries of the Delusion

Cosmetics

Proof of our denial of death is as close as your television or the conversation in the next cubicle. The yearly revenue for cosmetics in the U.S. was $54.89 billion last year. These purchases were part of a plan to thwart the natural effects of aging. Aging reminds us of our mortality. We can’t acknowledge that alarming reality.

Plastic Surgery

Money spent to combat aging didn’t stop with cosmetics. The total bill for plastic surgery last year was over $16 billion. The procedures included the following:

• breast augmentations
• liposuction
• tummy tucks
• nose reshapings
• butt augmentations 

Skin cancer from tanning devices cost $343 million last year. We are so driven to hide the reality of aging, we are baking ourselves sick.

Clearly, we Americans take serious our efforts toward deluding ourselves that we are not getting older and are not approaching death. 

The Cold Reality of Death

As pastor Aleister Begg said once, “we all fear the sound of the jangling of the undertaker’s keys.” Sane and rational people would observe the number of funerals held every day and the sheer numbers of plots that fill cemeteries. Saner men and women would embrace the reality of death. The first logical question to ask ourselves is “what do we do now?” 

Fleeing From the Truth

Our society finds the thought of dying challenging and has left it ignored. Such people are cowards. They run from hard reality and embrace a fairy tale of denial. These awkwardly frightened folks will never find an answer that way. 

Memento Mori

  Memento Mori is a Latin expression that means Remember, you will die. Realizing that you will die is a good first step to facing the challenge of being mortal. Once you do that, then you have to work through the implications of that truth. I’ll deal with that in future blog posts.

While we wait, remember, Momento Mori.