When I wear a short sleeved shirt, you can see a tattoo peaking out of my left inner-bicep sleeve. The tattoo reads “Memento Mori” in a sort of gothic, calligraphic font. When people notice this, they often inquire about its meaning and significance to me.
The meaning literally translated is “remember you will die” but I usually soften it to “remember your mortality”. Some people see this as morbid or dark, yet I see it differently. I got this tattoo because I thought then (and still think now) that remembering and appreciating the temporal nature of life is key to actually living ones best and fullest life.
The phrase also alludes to the presence of skulls and other mementos of death in art and literature. As in the photo above, a human skull makes us confront the temporal nature of our existence – a physical representation of a complex reality.
This conversation about the tattoo often leads into topics about death and it’s place in our lives. When appropriate, I’ll share my larger views on this, like how I welcome death at anytime. Sounds weird, I know. But just bare with me.
First, I don’t want to die. I enjoy life the vast majority of the time and want to see where things go (both in my own life and with my friends, family, and the world). Yet, I say I welcome death because I think it will be a welcome rest after an active, full, and beautiful life.
I’ve been so fortunate in my life to see so many incredible places, meet so many interesting and inspiring people, to experience platonic and romantic love, and have so many amazing experiences.
I’m so grateful to get to live this life and experience everything that anytime I need to go, I feel that I’ll bow out gracefully and just be thankful for getting to experience anything at all.
The chances of my existence — the billions of tiny things that had to go right — are impossibly small. And yet, somehow, possible because I’m here.
We are not entitled to anything.
That we get to experience life is a gift and we don’t get to decide the parameters of a gift given to us. The only thing we can do is live. We can only try to experience as much as we can: love, fun adventures, laughing with good friends, and enjoying the dynamic ups and downs that come with living.
So the next time you feel negative emotions, just remember to appreciate that you get to feel these emotions in the first place – that you get to experience this at all.
That’s what it’s all about. Experiencing the full range of human emotions within our temporary vessel on this incredibly beautiful planet hurtling through the stars, planets, and infinite space of the universe.