This morning I had a thought that expanded my mind a bit, and I thought I would share it.
What if death is just the harvest of a life well-lived? To reap is to collect a grain crop, such as wheat, corn, or barley. If this is done by hand, it is done with a scythe or sickle—the thing that the grim reaper is depicted holding.
This is not to say that those we love are not taken from us too soon, or that we should grieve less. It’s just an idea that could be useful when acknowledging that everything and everyone has its ending, and to point out that if death were a harvest, this implies that there is still a life after life. It just looks different than our growing and maturing phase did. Perhaps us being here, and living to the best of our ability, feeds and sustains others for a long time to come.
This is also an interesting thought to tie into the current season we’re in here in Kansas, autumn. In most agricultural societies, the last harvest was carried out during this time period in order to prepare for winter where almost nothing will grow. The work that we did in previous seasons pays off in a reaping to make the harshest months of the year easier; so that we can make it to spring and the seasonal new year.
Another little ray of hope and message from the Earth and even our own symbolic figures, like the grim reaper, that death is the beginning of something new at the same time that it is the ending of something old.
I hope this idea of endings and beginnings can carry you through any seasonal depression you may start to get.
And remember, there will always be spring.
With all of my love,
-Elena
