How Precious is Life?

I watched a handsome film about the life of Pocahontas called The New World. In it two different men, Captain John Smith and tobacco farmer John Rolfe, fell in love with the Algonquian Indian princess. Blessed by God with a radiant soul and graceful appearance, Pocahontas burned a hole in the heart of those who met her. Tragically, she died in 1615 at the tender age of 22 leaving behind two broken hearts - that of her true love, Captain Smith, and the other of her husband, John Rolfe.

I fell in love with Pocahontas. She reminded me of Julie. My heart sunk when she died and for a moment it made me think about life without my Julie. It made me think about how one day you have love and the next day it is gone. There are no guarantees on tomorrow. That night I gently kissed Julie. I held my lips to hers and felt the warm breath streaming from her nostrils. I grasped onto everything living about her knowing how fragile life can be.

Death comes in lots of flavors some of which have changed since 1615. A bad day in 1615 meant you were going to shit yourself to death (dysentery) or literally sweat your balls off (sweating sickness). Other common dead ends were the black plague (very trendy), influenza (a day off from work today), famine and scurvy (killed the pirate industry).

In 2006 you have more than a 50-50 chance of checking out from heart disease or cancer. Back in the 1600’s most people didn’t make it past the age of 35 – too young for clogged arteries. They claim 80% of cancer is caused by your environment and lifestyle not inheritance. Things like your diet, tobacco, alcohol, radiation, infectious agents and substances in the air, water and soil. I’ll watch what I put in my mouth if everyone else watches what they put in the water.

Other fun modern endings in order of magnitude include drug and alcohol abuse (party!), automobile accident and gunshot wound. Actually, ranking death doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense to me. The latest heart attack victim and the woman who was crushed in the collapse of the Big Dig are both equally dead. What does it matter?

You can leave me out of the auto accident. At least with substance abuse you can see it coming over time. Even getting shot shouldn’t come as a total surprise given you probably just finished really pissing someone off. But an auto accident is so random.

“Hey Honey, turn up the radio! That’s my favorite…WHAM!!!”

Given we now live to an average age of 77 we have learned a thing or two about the cause and effects of dying. Eating food has been a big lift to most folks. Famine still exist in this world (ashamedly), but not in our world (wink!wink!). Vaccines have taken care of most viruses. It’s been 386 years and 47 days since the last school closing for the bubonic plague…and counting.

In 1604 King James was actually intuitive enough to know a pouch of smoke should have a warning label stitched on the side. In his Counterblast to Tobacco, King James described smoking as “loathsome to the eye, hateful to the nose, harmful to the brain, and dangerous to the lungs.” His letter must have gotten lost in the mail because 400 years later lawyers, doctors, cigarette manufacturers and folks with ½ a lung are still debating the goodness of a butt in court.

Gosh, I didn’t mean to go off on this tangent about death [Note from sub-self: Oh yes he did; the guy is obsessed with death]. The movie really reminded me of how much I treasure life, especially the lives of those I love. So, extinguish the smokes, don’t eat too much cheese, lay off the booze and drive the speed limit.

Hey, Juls! Come over here. I want to give you another kiss.

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