Bridging

Death is that mysterious something that keeps many of us mortified. Simply put, death is a mystery. The mystery of death is shrouded by sectarian and dogmatic assertions ranging from tales of the Afterlife to oblivion. In the end, only those who die understand the world's circumstances behind the portal of death; however, the mystery of death may be known even unto life because what there is in death never existed to begin with; it was only ever of the imagination.

Immortality is the opportunity to stare death in the face and not be afraid. Beyond the physical is Life. Beyond life is immortality. Beyond immortality is nothing. Life's cherishable moments cannot be bought, sold, or traded. The only actual value of life is love. Love is.

The Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson, is a modern children's classic. Many classics touch upon the subject of death, but none leave the door open for the return flight like this one. Two children, Jess and Leslie, form a bond and create an imaginary world called Terabithia. The children must take a rope swing to cross over to this world. One of the children, Leslie, tragically dies on her way to this imagined faraway land. To Jess: "Leslie was more than his friend. She was his other, more exciting self - his way to Terabithia and all the worlds beyond."

However, traveling between the portals of life and death has never been easier once one remembers a few fundamentals:

1. Death defies gravity.

2. Immortality is the spice of life.

3. And the soul is boundless in either case.

To have achieved immortality is to know of oneself free from the emergence of life itself. You are life itself.