No Time like Present Time

A while back I had one of those conversations with a complete stranger that stretched into the very late no turning back zone.  From sunset to near sunrise we covered subjects and topics on much more stuff than really mattered.  But just before staggering off totally saturated and completely sodden we had one last subject to throw up.

On the open ended universal spectrum of way too much consumption, Changi Village Hawker Centre located in Singapore seemed to be an appropriate as anywhere location to get into a gabfest with someone I had never met before. 

Back then I was still prone to fascination with my fellow species and was open to having interesting encounters if the opportunity arose.  I am still interested but not that fascinated these days.  Maybe aging wearies enthusiasm or maybe grumpiness and cynicism creeps insidiously into aching joints and muddled middle aged minds.

Anyway, whatever bullshit my new bestie and I pontificated, postulated, spit, spluttered and splattered about, it was our final discussion that put the proverbial lid on the chin-chin.

Death, physical and metaphorically, is completely capable of stopping absolutely everything in its forward momentum.  At the end of our marathon discussion it seemed only fitting to end it on a terminal crunch.  What transpired wasn’t a chat about the inevitability of death.  It was a debate on whether or not death is a teacher or torturer or just a major inconvenience after a lifetime of futile grasping and searching for some sort of meaning.

The subject of death and dying has a rapid ability to sober up any discussion and bring any humour to a crunching halt, it’s very serious business.

So as morning light threatened to fully obliterate our bleary bloodshot eyes we threw our opinionated opinions at death and its pros and cons.  Below is a summary of what came from the inebriated minds and slurring tongues of two humans who had never known before and would never meet again.      

Firstly, death really is a total inconvenient occurrence but unfortunately it’s an unavoidable happening that can destroy much more than the being it’s actually physically killing.

Secondly, it can be, and often is, a blessing for beings who are suffering way beyond what’s acceptable according to any belief system or political law.

Thirdly, it can bring individuals and groups together and blow them apart for generations to come.

Fourthly, it can allow time for stuff to be sorted out yet deny time for stuff to be sorted through.  It can be the biggest bargaining chip of all and the greatest of all teaching tools.

It can take time to present itself.

Finally, and most importantly of all, it can be the biggest and most important present that time can offer us all.