Expiration introspection

I was reminded again of our how mortal we can be just this morning when I was reading the local newspaper. Every day we read of obituaries, news of natural disasters, accidents, murders, wars, and I think I've read so much of all these tragedies that I have somehow grown somewhat desensitised to it all (which can be dangerous). I may think to myself, "Oh, it's another earthquake...how terrible", but promptly proceed to forget about it a few hours later.

But, something made me take notice of this particular news item. "Taiwanese Man Dies After Watching 'Avatar', the headline said. Apparently, the victim had a history of high blood pressure and having watched the movie, he complained of being unwell and by the time he reached the hospital, he was already unconscious. Eleven days later, the man died from brain haemorrhage, which the emergency-room doctor said could have been triggered by over-excitement from the movie.

What was meant to bring enjoyment, instead brought death.

I've personally heard numerous stories of people engaging in activities that they enjoy only to suddenly drop dead the very next second. I read as well of supposedly fit people like professional footballers suddenly drop dead in the middle of the game. I know this sounds like a morbid subject to talk about, but I guess sometimes it's helpful to have such reminders to actually slap me in the face and tell me that hey, you never know when you're going to leave this world so why not make every second that you have, count.

But even more importantly, make doubly sure that I know where I'm headed after that.