Life is short

I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker
I have seen the eternal footman hold my coat, and snicker
And in short, I was afraid. - T.S. Eliot

Folks commented on a poem I posted about a month ago, and gave me the idea for this post. The question at hand is: How do we deal with the fact that life is short? Do we "eat, drink, and be merry"? Do we try to make the world better for those who come after us, knowing that we will not always see the results of what we do? Simplistic wisdom (thanks to the football coach from my high school) tells us to "run every play like it was your last." But does a person function best under a looming, frightening deadline? Perhaps some do. There's something to be said, however, for allowing yourself to slip into slower rhythms, and work on something like you have forever to complete it. You can feel yourself sliding into a space that's timeless, if but for a moment. Now I'm probably not making much sense. Here are two sets of song lyrics on the subject - I find one far superior to the other.

"Live Like You Were Dyin'" - Tim McGraw

He said I was in my early 40's
With a lot of life before me,
And a moment came that stopped me on a dime.
I spent most of the next days, lookin' at the x-rays,
Talkin' 'bout the options and talkin' 'bout sweet time.
Asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end.
How's it hit ya, when you get that kind of news...Man what ya do.?
And he says:
I went sky divin', I went rocky mountain climbin',
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull name Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper, And I spoke sweeter,
And I gave forgiveness I've been denying,
And he said someday I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'.
He said I was finally the husband,
That most the time I wasn't.
And I became a friend a friend would like to have.
And all the sudden goin' fishing, Wasn't such an imposition.
And I went three times that year I lost my dad
.Well I finally read the good book,And I took a good long hard look
at what I'd doIf I could do it all again.
[Chorus]
Like tomorrow was a gift and you've got eternity
To think about what you do with it,What could you do with it,
what canI do with with it, what would I do with it...

And here's the second:

If you knew that you would die today,
If you saw the face of God and Love,Would you change?
Would you change?
If you knew that love can break your heart,
If you're down so low you cannot fall,Would you change?
Would you change?
How bad, how good does it need to get?
How many losses, how much regret?
What chain reaction would cause an effect?
Makes you turn around, makes you try to explain,
Makes you forgive and forget, makes you change?
If you knew that you would be alone,
Knowing right and being wrong,
Would you change? Would you change?
If you knew that you had found a truth,
That brings up pain that can't be soothed,
Would you change? Would you change?
How bad, how good does it need to get?
How many losses, how much regret?
What chain reaction would cause an effect?
Makes you turn around, makes you try to explain,
Makes you forgive and forget, makes you change?
Are you so upright you can't be bent?
If it comes to blows are you sure you won't be crawling?
If it's not for the good, why risk falling?
If everything you think you know,Makes your life unbearable,
Would you change? Would you change?
If you've broken every rule and vow
And hard times come to bring you down,Would you change?
Would you change?
If you knew that you would die today,
If you saw the face of God and Love,
Would you change? Would you change?

Now, I'll admit that neither is the most profound song ever, but I like the second much more. I'd argue that the latter deals with responsibility, while the former is more about opportunity. The Tracy Chapman song seems to suggest that at the end of life there is some sort of reckoning, a meeting with God, something I don't neccessarily believe in. What I do like is that she seems to say, "life is short - you're not so big and important and invincible as you think." She suggests that dealing with one's own mortality brings humility, and the desire to change, and follow more fruitful pursuits. Tim McGraw's song, I think, has a smaller world view. He does talk about giving forgiveness, and being a better husband and father - but notice that even there, he focuses on his own personal growth, the words "husband" and "father" are his roles, that he's trying to improve his performance in. He wants to cram in all the fun he can, and suck the marrow out of life. I totally support his desire to live life to the fullest (though I'm not sure why he needed to include the unfortunate name of the bull). But isn't there more to life than that? Maybe not when you look at the world as an individual, or even as a member of your family, but when you look at yourself as a member of your community, an actor in the environment - doesn't your mortality give you a sense of urgency in working towards making your world a better place? And if it does, might you perhaps have to forgo some bullriding and mountain-climbing, to save some energy and bravery for more productive tasks?

Just a thought. The Tim McGraw song, to me, is an example of a lot of what's wrong with the way pop culture, and our culture in general approaches spirituality these days. It goes somewhere interesting, and it says something positive and nice, but it just doesn't go deep enough. It doesn't say anything bad, but it doesn't say anything good either. Sentimentality can be as dangerous as a lie.