My Immortal

I don't want to achieve immortality through my work... I want to achieve it through not dying.

Woody Allen (1935 - ) 
 
Try this: write your own obituary.  What would it say?  Is it a three word salutation, i.e.: RIP or a soliloquy extolling your virtues?

Here lies Blackgirl.

She was awesome!

or

Here lies Blackgirl

   Award winning author, publisher,

mother of two, faithful wife,

motorcycle enthusiast,

Sensei and philosopher.

She changed the world! 

Will you really be remembered and by whom? 

     Everyone wants to be immortal.  I,personally, plan to live forever-barring unforeseen accidents (and foreseen ones too, of course.) Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. But as Robert Heinlein wrote (  To Sail Beyond The Sunset-awesome book and one of my favorite authors) "Yes, maybe it's just one colossal big joke, with no point to it. But I can tell you this...  whatever the answers are, here's one monkey that's going to keep on climbing, and looking around him to see what he can see, as long as the tree holds out."

     Realistically, (but who wants to be realistic, really?  ahem,)  Realistically,  immortality lies in creating a presence, a memory of ourselves that lives on past death- in making an impression that influences people`s lives- in leaving behind a legacy- whether tangible- through children, wealth or charity or intangible- merely, (I say merely, though it`s anything but) the warm rememberances of family and friends.   Immortality has been the goal of humanity for generations because we cannot definitively answer the question "What happens when we die?" Therefore like any intelligent being we seek to avoid altogether that　ultimate mystery - either by "living it up"- boozing, wenching, motorcycle abuse ( my favorite!)

(Ed. note-we here at Blackgirl industries do not in any way endorse motorcyle abuse. Our motto is and always will be - Just Say No!)

 or we end up avoiding life itself all together-living a life of "quiet desperation."  Avoiding anything that might upset the delicate balance that keeps the organism that is you, ticking-strong drink, strong language, strong women- a recipe for disaster  and a early grave? Mayhap. The truth is -immortality is unachievable- but living forever is not- if you consider that forever, as far as you know, is as long as you, personally live.  So somehow, we need to inject life into our life.  To make (I know, people) "every moment count."- to stretch the minutes into hours in a good way-not like when you`re at the office and can`t wait to get home.  Make as many minutes joyful- full of joy- as you can. This does not mean you will always be happy! It does mean that you will be joy-full-capable of feeling the fullness of life and you must be mind-full- using the full capacity of  your mind to fully engage in your life- in feeling and being alive-whether that means feeling grief or liberation.  Forever is a misnomer-eternity is only nomenclature- a name for the experience of being alive.  A hummingbird`s heart beats at 1200 beats per minute-their life depends on the tiniest of organs continually throbbing- on continually feeding -on literally "stopping to smell the roses." You  are not a hummingbird (unless you are, in which case, my apologies), but you are human- an organism singularly gifted at -designed even to experience, enjoy and  remember life.  Your body is designed to survive, your mind is designed to comprehend (a lot more than we generally allow it to.) Your spirit wants to experience life... so let it. Be alive, Be aware, Be joyful.  

"You are immortal, beloved.  You cannot die.."(Heinlein- Time Enough For Love) -

   unless you haven`t truly lived  ...(me)