Paradox

Death is always a touchy, emotional, and personal subject, and different people associate different emotions, perceptions, and beliefs with death.  Moller notes that in a very general sense (and this by no means applies to everyone Moller encountered) the indigent that he encounters and forms relationships with seem to be more at peace with death than the affluent of our society.  As Gary Allan sings, “the struggles make you stronger,” accounting for the apparent toughness of people who are born, live, and die in poverty.  Moller makes an interesting comparison: “the disempowered are often more empowered in facing the burden of suffering, disease, and death than are those more empowered and advantaged” (27).  Surely by American standards, those with material riches are the empowered, but Moller seems to suggest that the idea of richness and empowerment may be more complex than we make it. 

“Where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”  Matthew 6:21 perfectly describes my thoughts related to death in this sense.  Many affluent people have a difficult time accepting loss of life because they have invested themselves in interests and materials of this worldy life.  Here we see a role reversal: in this sense, the rich are poor and the poor are rich.  While affluence provides us with goods, it also gives us more to lose.  I’m not trying to prove that either affluence or poverty is bad or good, but rather that investing too much in worldly things will make death a much more difficult experience.  I admire the dying poor that Moller describes in this respect. 

Dancing With Broken Bones.  David Wendell Moller.