My Personal Experience of Death

          “As you struggle with the mystery of death, you will discover the meaning of life.”

                                                                                                                - M. Scott Peck, M.D

          Death is inevitable. No one could ever foretell the exact time that someone will die and no one could ever avoid of dying. No one is capable of escaping death. Death will always be part of one’s life. It is a natural phenomenon for all the things that exist in this world as we know nothing last forever.

Well, many of us have experienced what we so called “near death experiences”. They say that it is a situation in which one’s soul was out of the human body for some physiological disorder that will absolutely caused death if it can’t be retrieved as soon as possible. However, fortunately for me, I have never experienced this particular scenario of near death situations yet like any other persons in the world I have too experienced the other way of experiencing death.

          The first sorrow of my life was the death of my best friend-- IVY TALIPAN last December 26, 2010. This was the first time that one of the most treasured persons in my life has passed away and definitely IVY and our friendship was the best and priceless gift I ever had in my life. Even though we are no longer seeing each other and do sharing our joy, laughter, happiness and pains but still our friendship will last forever. IVY will always be in my heart, all the memories we had will remain in my mind and heart forever. At first, sadness ruled my world when I encounter such death, such dreadful event of my life. Yet, as time passed by, little by little, the wound of sadness healed but it created a mark, a scar in my heart and mind. Luckily through acceptance, this scar of mine somewhat turned into a tribal scar. By that time, I have accepted what had happened to me so there are no more sign of sadness, grieve, hurt and suffering can be extracted to the scar but it is now a symbolism for fighting and learning.

          I then realized and reached to my mind about the non- fiction novel, Tuesday’s With Moore by Mitch Albom. I have read the novel yet when I was reading the novel I was not so touched or melted by the emotional scenes in the story. I haven’t practiced what should one must be learned after reading the novel that somehow be planted to every reader’s heart. The main reasons perhaps are that during that time I am reading the novel I have never been in a situation of losing someone very special like my best friend or even I haven’t encountered death so far, I have never personally experienced seeing and watching my family member who is dead and I was so happy in my life at that time that I forgot of knowing what death really means. Luckily, God made a way for me to realize the essence of one’s life and that is the way for me of knowing what death means. After losing my best friend I was then caught by myself about the lesson’s given to Mitch by his professor, Moore, who is dying and in the end he really died yet converted Mitch into a better person. I have then realized, Ohh!, life is really too short so I must live like I am dying, I must live my life to the fullest and treasure every seconds of it. I was then in a state of cloud nine!

          I must face death every moments of my life because of doing this I make my life more fruitful. I looked back to my best friend’s death; yet, I saw a “good thing” happened to me of encountering that deathly scene that despite of those hurts and sadness felt, I become more familiar with the thought of death. I can say I did grow into a better person after that first sorrow of mine. It helps me to strive harder and do the best I can do. I think every day or every hour as if my last and treated it as a gift from God that I am still here writing this reflection paper, in a good health and breathing the breath of life given by the almighty God. I have realized after facing death that it produces myself to love more of what we so called--- LIFE. I then live with courage and confidence. Generally, my personal experience of death is not all about suffering, grieve, hurt and sadness but is more about learning--- to face life through facing death. Acceptance of dying is an important recipe of living. I always bear in my mind that I came from dust and through dust I shall return.

How To Gain Happiness

          How to Gain Happiness?

Reasons Why I am Happy

         Being happy is not as easy as one ever think of. According to you-can-be-happy.com there are many factors on what makes a person happy like laughter, knowing ones loved and loving oneself, giving oneself the things he ever dreamed of and even laughing at your self. Well, this probably right in some ways because in my own observation the final judgment will always be on the person who wants happiness and how he will achieved such that goal. And for me the first thing to do above all other things needed is know one self first. Knowing one self and the persons around on someone will always be a greater help in achieving true happiness.

             Happiness takes time and the ability to value the things around. I'll be turning twenty (20) twenty four (24) days from now and this would be my last days of being a part of teenager, well, 19 years of existence in this wild wide world and 19 years of experiencing the spices of happiness -pain, hunger of love, discouragement and fear. Yes, at first I experienced all those “harsh things” as they say but I have raised my flag on the top that I have conquered all those “pre-harsh things” as I call them. I know I am still young and those things were just simple preliminary trials sent by God in order for me to achieve my true happiness. Fortunately, after all those mess, indeed, it makes me smile at my self.

              I am happy because I have my friends around me. I know this is so cliché but what can I do? My friends help me in many ways –I can talk with my problems to them, the problems I couldn’t tell to my parents. They lifted me up when my world is falling apart and I felt no place to go. They were my great adviser about my relationships in love and other so. My friends are really great, they fill the things I couldn’t experienced at home, they somehow develop me as who I am now. I am happy that I have them –they made my life more colorful.

                 I am happy because I have my family especially my MOTHER. She don’t only give me food, shelter, clothing, education or even money but they gave me more on that. They give me values that until now I have uphold, my mother is my best teacher and mentor. I am very happy to have my noble mother, they taught me to walk and run into the hard days of my life and when every time I fell down, they will always be there cheering me up and giving me courage and strength not to give up but instead to continue to reach what I am reaching for.

             Above all, I will always thanks God for everything He has done for me. He gave me instruments like my friends, family and my personal experiences to gain my happiness that I am experiencing in my life. I know I am very blessed with my life now. He is truly my ultimate provider of happiness.

            It is so nice to reflect one self at a moment. It gives me the opportunity to speak, to express and to realize the thing which makes me happy. Yes, I have all those basic materials stuff –cell phones, laptops, branded bags, dress, shoes and some things that money can buy but realizing the fact that all those things will not last; it will intersect the fact that it is only a temporary happiness.

            True happiness is more than that of money. True happiness is the happiness that came from the heart as they say it, happiness that will fill ones soul and happiness that you can bring even in the next world or life. These help me a lot not to be blind of the things that makes me happy and help me realized the roots for all my happiness in life. The happiness came from God, you have it now, just realize and think it too just how I did and you’ll know what I mean, and you’ll know how happy and blessed you are. Lastly I can say, “There are no such things as hindrance for someone not to succeed in being happy except of not knowing his own self”.