“THIS IS WHY SOME PEOPLE drink,” I told my friend, provoking him into loud laughter.
We were talking about THE FRAGILITY: that immediate realization of the tenuousness of life, and its property of drastically changing in a cold heartbeat through death, incapacitation or other sad surprise. (So immediate is this experience that I’m listing it as one of the [unofficial] 365 Names of G?d.)
You’ve heard it before: “Live each day as if it were your last.” “Nothing is forever.” “It all goes by like that.” These phrases have become cliches, because they’re all true. What can we do about it?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Except (and here comes another true cliche) to pay attention to, and/or enjoy, and/or find meaning in each fleeting moment — and hope it makes a good and lasting memory. Because no matter how long it lasts, it isn’t long enough.
Once upon a time, in 2011 in fact, The Metaphorager aspired each day to feature a different name for that-which-some-people-call-God. Some were creative, others traditional, each unique, all interesting; so we’re going to attempt that again (though not every day) until we run out of the more than 40 names we’ve managed to collect so far. If you want to see your favorite here, but haven’t, send it along with the subject line “365 Names” and let us know whether or not you want to be credited.