One of my most favourite movie is Anand. It is about a young man, who is suffering from blood cancer, has lost the love of his life, and doctors have given him only six months to live. Inspite of all this, he is filled with joie de vivre. He is cheerful himself and goes around spreading happiness. This movie has been such an inspiration!

There are two dialogues of the movie that really hit home. One is, “’Babumoshai, zindagi aur maut uparwale ke haath hai jahanpanah. Usse na toh aap badal sakte hain na main. Hum sab toh rangmanch ki kathputhliyan hain jinki dor uparwale ki ungliyon main bandhi hain. Kab, kaun, kaise uthega yeh koi nahi bata sakta hai. Ha, ha, ha.” It means life and death is in God’s hands. No one can change when we are born and when we will die. We are all puppets in the world stage (as also said by Shakespeare) No one can say when our role will end.

Another one is “Zindagi badi honi chahiye, lambi nahin” It means the length of life does not matter, how you live your life matters”

Human beings are inherently afraid of death. Even if their life is full of misery, they will want to continue being alive. Even in vegetative state, they would want to continue to live. However, death not only means loss of life. It also means losing your loved ones. The fear of not being with your loved ones anymore, the fear of not getting to enjoy the pleasures of life anymore, the fear of leaving unfinished business, all contribute to fear of death.

Death is also not about death of the body. Sometimes death is of relationships, of jobs, of career, of your current life. It is difficult to let go. It is difficult to let go of things you love, the places you love, the people you love. But just like where there is life, there is death, there is a new life after death. When a door closes, it is because you are now ready to open a new door. Embark on a new adventure, have a new life, maybe with your old experiences guiding you.

You cannot control death but you can control how you live your life. Enjoy every moment of your life. Life will throw you curveballs when you least expect. Think of the curveballs as lessons you need to learn. When a river comes across hurdles, it carves a new path for itself. And as the great Phil Dunphy says, when life gives you lemonade, make lemons 😉