Month of birth and death

That's what the month of October felt like for me.

1. Mother-in-law was hospitalised
2. My birthday
3. Execution of Tibetans
4. Death of a friend's dad

Was it a good month? I would have to say YES
Simply because there was so much lessons learnt and to be learnt

What is birth and what is death.
If you really think about it, it is simply a phase that we all have to go thru.
As Thich Nhat Hanh wrote, it should not be death day, but a day of continuation.

For we all start off life with the same premise. That we will die at some point of time. So what is there to fear.

For me, the greatest suffering in seeing my loved ones hospitalised and/or waiting for death, is not the fact that they will die. But the fact that I do not have the ability to help them thru.

To help them not fear death
To help them face death and understand that it is a continuation
To help them repent of their past misdeeds so that they may leave without regret and anger or sadness
To assist them to a pure/better rebirth
To help them develop understanding of the reality of life

such is the shortcoming of human beings