Short and Sweet

Well, I'm going to keep this post nice and short like the title because it may not be the most upbeat for everyone. Also, I will be posting more positive things on my trip to Laos but I digress. I went to Laos with a group of people yesterday to get my non-B immigrant visa to be in Thailand legally. It was also the night of a large festival honoring the creature that apparently lives in the Mekong River-a night of lots of drinking, eating, and releasing lanterns into the sky and handmade boats of flowers, palm leaves, and incense.

The festivities went on well into the night and things were crazy, but certainly not out of control. However, I was given a rude awakening to how short and sweet life truly is at about 1:40 AM outside of my hotel. After being asleep for only about an hour, I heard a very loud "BOOM" and a moment of utter silence amid all of the blasting music and partying. I thought it was fireworks, so I did not think much of it. I went to look out my window, however, after I heard people running and yelling loudly. I looked down from my second floor window onto the street to a pretty horrific scene. There was blood on the pavement and a motorbike broken into pieces all over the street. People were talking in hushed tones and staring at the motorbike, but not really doing anything. I learned this morning that a teenager had been drinking, a lot, hopped on his motorbike, and was driving way too fast through an intersection. He collided head-on with a moving van and died instantly.

I'm not trying to ruin anyone's day or anything like that. I just want to express how beautiful life is, but also how quickly it can be changed or extinguished-truly in an instant. We all need to stop and think about our actions. Life is about having fun, about living to the fullest, and while everyone wants to live each day as though it were their last, I do not think that most of us can honestly say we want today to be the last one we have. Now, I cannot push my feelings onto you or make you feel what I felt last night, but I can tell you that we all need to slow down from time-to-time, stop and smell the roses-whatever floats your boat-because you really have no clue if today is your last. Tell your loved ones you love them, apologize when you are wrong, do not waste your heart on someone who is not giving you theirs. If you feel like all of a sudden you need to give grandma a call, do it. Do not, for one second, take for granted the gift of life that has been given to you and the responsibility for self and others which that entails.

I have realized that different societies and cultures have different conceptions of what "death" means. In the U.S., we live in a death-denying culture where we have essentially been taught as a society to act as though death is not imminent, that even if we are on the brink, some miraculous doctor will come along and save us. In Thailand, and more so in Laos, death in such a violent manner is an almost everyday occurrence. Motorcycle and car accidents happen so frequently, that people take a look, and literally walk away as though nothing happened or nothing could be done. We need to accept the realities of life, not deny or ignore them.