Life is a precious gift that we get the privilege to have. Each second of our lives we should make count because it is what forms us into what we are remembered for. In this life we have many things to learn, but one thing that comes naturally is our will to live.
Recently we were reminded of what happened about 100 years ago, the day that the
Titanic sank. Many lives were lost in that tragic accident, and many lives were effected. Many
morose stories have been heard of the chaos, everyone so focused on living that they did not care what price might be paid. The
celerity of the moment may have led some to become what they never dreamed of becoming.Some may have become murderers in that moment because their will was so strong that they did what ever it took. They may have felt
beset because of what they had to do to survive. I'm sure though, that when they looked back, that day of survival was not something they were proud of.
My class has recently been reading
The Call of the Wild. In this book, there are moments where the zeal to survive shows very strongly in the lives of the
ferine dogs. Buck, the main dog, shows it most when he goes on a journey with some newcomers and is forced to have a
voracious appetite because of the lack of food, but some how he keeps on trucking. Even when he sees his fellow dogs dropping out one by one, he kept fighting for his survival, and he finally finds himself alive and well.
The zeal to survive is strong and hard to control. How you reaction may surprise you in that moment, but I think that true strength comes when you allow someone else to take your spot in living. So if you were in a near death experience, would you do what ever it takes to live? Or, would you accept death and put other lives before your own?
