What Is Your Attitude Towards Death?
We all fear death. No living person on earth can conquer death. Death has often been taboo. The fragility and minuteness of human existence are as blatant as ever in the face of death. Because what lies after death is unknown, we are forced to wait passively with our hands tied. But what if we can foresee our own death? Will our decisions and choices still be the same?
There is a Japanese comic-based movie that depicts the story of foreseeing death. The plot centers around a young man who needs to deliver, one-by-one, a “Death Notice” from the government to those who are going to die within 24 hours. Such a notice derives from a perverted system of governance called the “National Prosperity and Sustainability Act,” mandating that every child be injected with an NPSA vaccine before entering elementary school. For every inoculated child, there is the possibility of one-in-a-thousand that the child was implanted with a nano-capsule that is designed to explode at a set time when he or she reaches between 18 to 24 years old. Those who contain this capsule will die immediately after the explosion. Such a cruel law was enacted to raise citizens’ awareness of the value of life by injecting the fear of death into them, so that in their limited time, they would seize the opportunity to become useful people, reducing the crime rate and suicide rate, and enhancing the overall productivity in society.
The story starts with three people receiving their Death Notices one after another. Each episode ends tragically, urging viewers to think about the value of human existence in the face of death.
Some people live merely for themselves, in pursuit of the dazzling five minutes on stage; while others live for those they care about. Despite having only 24 hours left, some still struggle to prove that they have lived.
If life is as depicted in the film — that we can foresee the time of our death — what will we choose to do with our limited time? Will we still quarrel or be in a cold war with our loved ones? Will we ignore people around us and continue to look down at our phones every day? Or will do our best to undo all our regrets?
Christians are very special. For us, death is just a form of sleep. In the whole world, no one has ever been able to skip the fate of death. Actually, the Bible reveals that a few have escaped death: Enoch, Elijah, and the one that has been raised from the dead — Jesus.
Death is not terrifying for us because we know what happens after death, and we prepare ourselves for the eventuality.
How about you? How will you live the remainder of your life? Have you found the meaning of your life?