Write your own obituary

What will you be remembered for?

Have you ever written your own obituary?

It’s a powerful and often illuminating exercise. It asks us to truly step back and consider the wholeness of our (possible) life—the ways in which we’d most like certain aspects of this life to play out—so that we might clarify in the here and now how we most want to be in this world (ways of being that we must then act on. An important detail!).

• What did we believe in?

• What did we fight to protect?

• Which people did we most deeply love?

• Which activities did we most enjoy?

• What fears did we face, metabolise and move beyond?

I recall the first—and now that I think of it, the only—time I wrote my obituary. I’ve done plenty of ‘last time’ meditations. I’ve used a Functional Imagery Training like approach to imagine myself on my death bed (another very powerful exercise). But I’ve only ever once written my own obituary.

It moved me to tears that came from deeeeeeeeep within. It helped me, at that time, clarify some of what truly mattered to me.

But guess what, a heck of a lot has changed since then, so I’m thinking it’s time I do this activity again.

I was prompted to revisit this activity thanks to a fairly recent shoot that Esther and I did in the Melbourne bush.

This is one of the images from that project.

And the following poem, written by Esther, accompanies it.

So, I ask, how do you want to be remembered?

With love as always.