I was just thinking how funny it is that we tend to think of death as being the ultimate obstacle of our perpetual happiness. Having mastered, say, the mortal planes, it's only death that stands to interrupt eternal bliss, right?

But I wonder if that's not just a lame excuse - we blame death because death is the first obstacle we're likely to encounter that we can't mitigate. Perhaps we only think of death as the ultimate hurdle because it hides from us the many other chasms into which our happines would fall - if given enough time.

If, say, you lived on and beat death - well you'd probably find yourself facing osteoporosis. Or you beat that but now the problem is too much sound.

Or not enough of it.

Or light. Or boredom. Or the morning dew, even a light breeze. Exhaustion.

None of those sound very pretty.

Death is not, I don't think, an obstacle. Consider it a "soft measure" - an easy, graceful, dignified exit from the stage. Before your energy wanes and you begin to waver. Before your spotlight fades.