At least 16 reasons why you should not take my death so seriously...

Such ego! To assume such seriousness! Nevertheless!

1. 😀
2. Cliche.
3. I know I am going to die. 
4. So do you. I mean that you know that I am going to die. And also that you know that you are going to die. But that’s a different topic.
5. Repeat 1, 2, 3, 4. Because some cliches need cliche repetitions. Death is always coming. No surprises there! We don’t know if I will become an engineer or a doctor or an astronaut or famous. But we know I will die. For sure. That’s all. Whatever horrendous/beautiful the cause, the obvious, the most well known, the most natural future of mine will surely happen to me. Death.
6. I don’t really want you to be in utter shock and extreme pain when I die. Among other things, I want you to also say things like- “Oh, Ruby is dead? That’s the expected outcome. OK!”
7. There are twenty thousand ways of dying. Old age, heart failure, organ failure, disease, chronic disease, accident, murder, rape and assault, abuse, starvation, war, terrorist attack, teenage firing, false target, doctor’s mistake, natural calamity, collateral damage, unknown reasons, fall at home, in sleep, dead and unnoticed for many days, … Just recall all those gruesome, shocking, normal, expected, beautiful, etc deaths that you know of. Imagine some more that you may not know of. I will die of one of those causes or some other extremely unique cause. Be imaginative, be prepared. OK, good. Now you are prepared! Well done! The bottomline- We have created this world in this way, hence these causes. I am going to go, this way or that way. Let’s not get consumed by the cause.

8. Sometimes when someone dies of some injustice, say, then the near ones feel things like- “Oh! I will make this my life’s mission to do something about it!” Even if I die of such causes, unless there’s some really really universe-calming effect, and if you are really jobless, there’s really no point in being consumed by the injustice or some such issue regarding my death. For example, if I die due to someone else’s mistake, then it’s OK, mistakes happen. We have created this world in this way. Also, mostly, the person would know their mistake deep inside. No need to make it your life’s mission to prove it, if it isn’t being easily proven. Please do not get consumed by this injustice. Forgive and mourn and move on and keep doing your jobs with care. If I die very beautifully or very heroically while saving the world (!!) then too, chill. Let’s try not to attach more meaning to my death than death itself. It’s the end. Let it be. Let’s try not to create beginnings out of it.
9. I am OK with dying anytime. Really. I won’t feel bad. So if I go abruptly, remember that I am OK with it. If I die young and ravishing (It’s no more possible!), cool! I know it’ll be terrible for you if you love me (again, such ego!), but please let the fact that it’s cool for me help you combat the shock better.
10. I have no unfulfilled wishes. Other than that of dying fit and fine and without making people sad. But isn’t that the cliche ultimate wish of everybody?! I will have to overcome it if it doesn’t get fulfilled! Working on it!
11. I don’t take myself very seriously. So I won’t take my dying very seriously. Trust me!
12. I work sincerely, but it’s OK. My unfinished tasks won’t stop the world and someone will finish them or do something even better. Also, I try to be mindful about making myself dispensable in the activities that I do with others, by including my process of working in the activity. (I bet you haven’t read a more bombastic way of saying “I am lazy!”) Finally, I try to be aware of the fact that at the very core of it, I do what I do to fill out my seconds, to boost my ego, to make my life livable. So, in that sense there’s no unfinished business as well, when I die.
13. For the same reason, when I die, don’t even change the course of your life to finish what I was doing. (Sometimes we feel so, out of love! But if you don’t, then cool! Don’t get ideas!) You are already making your world more livable. Please keep living what you have been living. Your life is your message. 
14. We are quite inconsequential in the large scheme of the universe. Cliche. But even beyond that, at the timescale of the Earth, life itself is meaningless. Species have lived and vanished multiple times. We might have, we will.(And yet, you still have to live through life till you die. So you live everyday sincerely and help make your world more and more livable everyday.)

15. If I love you and I know that you know that and if you love me and and you know that I know that, then we should just chill! 
16. When I die, I am going to remain dead for a verrrrrry lonnnng time!
17. I have one bank account. 
18. My death will be the end of my stress, my suffering, if any. Cool cliche.
19. What’s more, you will be free of my physical form!
20. When I die, I couldn’t care less!
21. Are you still taking it seriously??? Please don’t!
22. And please add if I missed anything…
23. 😀

If you are invested in me, chances are that you will be affected by my death. (Again and again, such ego!) But really, there’s nothing much to death than the fact that everybody dies. Cliche. The only sensible grief is that you will miss my physical presence. That’s the real pain. Another cliche. And as everybody knows, one heals over time. You will. Please do! Keep sleeping well, keep shitting well, keep exercising, keep eating less and less processed food. (However you parse the lesses! Lesser the merrier!) Or, if I have died of exercising and eating less processed food, then you would know better!

P.S.- I enjoyed writing this piece. And I did wish I shouldn’t die before I finish writing. And I didn’t. Die! Because I have finished. Writing!