"Life is a Fatal Disease"

We've all heard that the only thing certain in life is death and taxes, right? Well, you may be able to avoid taxes, I suppose, but as of now there is no way to avoid death. It comes for us all.


Yes, this sounds like a fun post, doesn't it?


Well, it's not as morbid as it may sound. This all comes from a line in a song by one of my favorite artists, Nuno Bettencourt. The song is "Swollen Princess" and it was written, from what I've heard, as he was contemplating his child's birth. It seems he was thinking about what could be going through the child's mind at that moment and the terror that a birth must instill.

And if I tell you all the truth
Would you promise not to cry
I prefer it back inside
It's nothin' that you did or said
I'm just kinda scared
I've just heard life is a fatal disease

Something with this song resonated with me. It was written in 1997, 11 years before the birth of my own "Swollen Princess", Shannon. Yet that last line, especially, connected with me when I first heard it. Not as a pessimistic view but as a slight dark, slightly comical take on reality. But even more so as a reason to make the most of life. From the day we are born, we're counting down til the end.


So don't act as the newborn in the song wishes to... don't hide from life; don't let the fear drive your decisions. Go out, leave your comfort zone from time time. Try something new and experience your life. I don't always (or often?) take that advice, I'll admit. But I'm trying to do so more often. And you know? I'm finding that I often like the results.


The day we are born, a doctor would be able to diagnose us, unfortunately, with that ultimately incurable disease, life. But so what? It's your life, make the most of it!