How to stop fearing death
The view of a young soul raised by JW
I was raised by Jehovah’s Witnesses’ parents. They taught me their beliefs and values. However, I’m a 20 years old young adult now and I no longer have anything to do with that religion.
I never felt like I belonged there, and as I got older, I understood why. I’m grateful for having such good values which they gave me, but truth is, I don’t identify with most of them. That was a weird and painful process as a teenager. I felt like I was the black sheep of the family, doubted myself thousands of times.
At last, I found peace about being different. However, some beliefs were placed in my head that I still struggle with.
Such as:
Death.
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that there is no reason to fear death: if you are loyal to God and follow the rules written in the Bible, there is a much better life after death. An afterlife without any kind of pain. Only pleasure. An eternal life.
Well, I’m not sure if there is anything at all after death. But even if there was, I certainly wouldn't be chosen to have eternal life, I don’t follow any of their rules.
Now, as an adult, I see death as the end of life, nothing more than that. It filled me with dread. Especially the idea of losing my loved ones.
I once asked myself:
Will I ever be in peace about death as a natural thing such as breathing?
So, how did I overcome it?
I realized that my best shot to face my fear is by imagining that death is my bully.
A bully that constantly reminds me, in front of the class, that I am overweight. I’ve never dealt with bullies, but I do know the best way to deal with them is by not taking it seriously. I’ve been overweight once, and I joked about it all the time! So, I never suffered from bullying. What if death was my bully, and to take away its power over me I had to make jokes about it and not taking it seriously?
Think about death every day. Don’t pretend it’s not real. Joke about it, and peacefully accept it.
Fearing death is fearing the future. Something you can’t control. Why waste your time on something uncontrolled rather than living the present to its fullest? Live the life you so badly want. Now.
“Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have. Make the now the primary focus of your life.”
-Eckhart Tolle
