I Am Terminal - And So Are You

For over 10 years, my 78-year-old mom keeps telling me, “I may not be around much longer. I’m going to die someday.”

I usually reply, “Yeah, me too.” 

Given my travels to sketchy countries, this isn’t the wisest way to reply to my sensitive mother. Still, I like to remind her (and myself) that anyone can perish at any moment. 

A positive morbid thought

As I wrote in Hike Your Own Hike, I think about death often–usually every day, sometimes multiple times per day. It may seem morbid to some but it’s incredibly motivating to me.

Recently, I listened to two podcasts that randomly struck the same chord:

1) Tim Ferriss’s podcast with the late Terry Laughlin. It’s boring podcast unless you’re really interested in improving your swimming technique. However, the last 10 minutes are moving because it records Terry Laughlin’s positive thoughts in his final days on Earth.

2) The BBC’s “Before I Go” podcast.This podcast has many wise nuggets that I’ll share on this page. The episode captures the thoughts of four terminally ill individuals. 

I’ve also received an advanced copy of Ursula K. Le Guin’s latest (and perhaps last) book, No Time to Spare: Thinking About What Matters. Before I review Guin’s book, I want to highlight some of the best excerpts from the “Before I Go” podcast.