After Fading

One of the things that fall is known for is the colorful displays that many trees put on; this is an example of a maple leaf beginning to turn. One of the things that strikes me about this picture is the way the color change is starting at the edge and moving its way towards the tree, as food production stops through the leaf. The edges look darker, too, as if the leaf’s life is slowly being drawn back into the tree.

When this process is complete, the leaf falls, decays, and eventually becomes part of other new growth.

In a way, this represents how some people see the end of human life. As life fades and eventually ends, the only thing that remains is the lingering effects of one’s actions during life. The ultimate expectation is nothingness, the eventual end of everything that is material.

But for many, the light represents something persistent. Like information, an immaterial thing that cannot be destroyed, so it may be that there is something inside us – whether mind, soul, or consciousness, who knows? – that also cannot be destroyed. The ultimate expectation of this is light, meaning, and [renewal | permanent renewal | persistence | persistent renewal].

Nothing in science allows us to be certain which of these paths is the truth. Yet, everyone ends up hoping in some such perspective, and that hope often affects how we live. Ultimately, this is a personal choice, one that’s worth careful consideration.