death

Guest Post by Kaylin McFarren

Everyone during their lifetime is faced with the possibility of losing a dear friend, family member or loved one. Each of us along with terminally-ill patients has been known to experience the same steps of grief before coming to terms with acceptance.

1 – Denial

Upon hearing a disheartening report, the recipient immediately retaliates with a conscious or unconscious refusal to accept facts, information, or the reality of the given situation. It's a defense mechanism and perfectly natural. Some people can become locked in this stage when dealing with traumatic change and simply refuse to move on.

2 – Anger

Frustration can manifest itself in different ways. People dealing with emotional upset can be angry with themselves or with others – especially anyone close to them. Some lash out at God, avoid their workplaces, and even isolate themselves.

3 - Bargaining

This stage often involves attempting to bargain with a religious deity. Some individuals are driven to convert and others offer themselves in trade to save a dying loved one.

4 - Depression

This is the dress rehearsal or the practice run for the 'aftermath' although this stage means different things depending on whom it involves. It's a sort of acceptance with emotional attachment. It's natural to feel sadness and regret, fear and uncertainty. It demonstrates that the person has begun to accept the reality or brutal truth.

5 - Acceptance

for the past five days, just like tonight we watched footage of the devastation in Haiti. late thursday afternoon while watching the news we saw a piece from one of the major relief agencies saying that they thought you shouldn't support YELEHaiti.

Honestly in light of the circumstances, it was both disheartening and shocking; to hear such a major organization spew negativity on Wyclef's organization. knowing that we have made several donations to YELEHaiti, we wondered why any organization would attempt to dissuade anyone from making a donation to a known organization; with a great track record of charitable activism in this area.

for those of you who don't know - Wyclef Jean IS Hatian. Since 2005 Wyclef has tirelessly provided for the people of Cite Soleil and Belvedere, through his charity YELEHAITI. we've featured his work projects and his fundraising event videos here on this blog. it's widely known that Wyclef is more popular with the Hatian people than even their president.

So this attack on his charity totally blindsided us. it's almost as though this charity who made this negative statement about Wyclef's foundation, didn't have any dirty laundry. we all remember the massive mis-use of donations following Hurricane Katrina by several leading charities - including the charity who made these disparaging statements.

just a fyi to the charitywatch folks - as proof of your stupidity

At Christian funerals they quote Yeshua (Jesus/ Iesous), saying, 'I am the resurrection and the life'. This comes from an incident where Yeshua raises a man named Lazarus to life after he was dead 4 days. Yeshua speaks to Martha who is Lazarus' sister,

Jesus said unto her, “Your brother shall rise again”.

Martha said to him, “I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day”.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live”: (John 11:23-25)

Yeshua stands at Lazarus' grave, prays to God and says, “Lazarus come forth”. Lazarus lives again. This is so remarkable an event that the leaders in Judea want to kill Lazarus to remove the evidence of Yeshua's ability. Everyone knew Lazarus was very dead and yet he walks again. This is like the final resurrection of the Last day, except that Lazarus still eventually died. Yeshua says in the resurrection people do not die anymore.

They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.(Luke 20:35-36) (cp Matthew 22:30)

This series features my frank confessions of life. An ostrich digs its face in ground when it faces a danger. I find myself no different from an ostrich who tended to ignore the daring question that life raised again and again from time to time. I tried my best to sustain the ostrich within me whenever I faced one of those bouts. But the few glimpses that I caught out of curiosity were sufficient to change the entire direction of my life. Read on the Confessions of an Ostrich…

Part 1

I woke up in the night and found myself sweating profusely. I felt like being choked. My mind felt all blank in fear. It was again one of those bouts I recall having since my early childhood. The same fundamental question engulfed my mind – Is this all going to end?

So I shall die one day. My parents, my relatives, my friends all are going to die. And when I die, it will all be blank. Even the peace I have during a deep sleep will not be there. Because, I shall no more wake up to discover whether the sleep was peaceful or not.

The oldest person I have ever heard of is around 156 years old. Even if I assume mythologies to be true, I could be several thousand years old but still I have to die. And if I live that long, it would mean, all my dearest ones will leave me forever much before. So either ways I am cursed.