The will to live is one of the most powerful things that we know. The will to live, or not to live, can determine many things. It can affect how long people can stretch out their lives when they are on the brink of death, when people die, and how people act in different situations that are close to death. For most people, when they are near death, they can try as hard as they can to change the outcome.

I have had different experiences with the deaths of others. These are not good things, but they have made me wiser. I can take a different look on life. I have been around death too early, death by old age, and the worst kind of death, suicide. I have learned many valuable lessons from these experiences. My understanding is that most people, when they are near the end, are ready to die or they are not.

Both of my grandparents experienced near-death situations recently. My mother’s dad (Herb) was ready to die. The first words my grandpa Herb spoke to my aunt Laura as she walked into the Mayo Health Care Center was, “I am ready.” This was not what Laura or the rest of Herb’s children wanted to hear, but it was the truth. He was ready to die. He said that he had lived a good life and worked hard throughout his life. I think this is why he chose a scripture reading from 2nd Timothy in The Bible to be read at his funeral. It reads, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” This reading described the way he wanted to live and the way he did live his life.

Herb’s health declined very quickly after he was diagnosed. All of his children and grandchildren wanted to see him one last time before he died. Herb even had two great grandchildren. All of Herb’s children and grandchildren made the trip to the hospital from their residences all around Wisconsin. Each relative made it there as quickly as they could, and they arrived at different times. The last grandchild whom Herb had not seen yet arrived at about 6:00 p.m. Herb died about nine hours after this time. Herb wanted to make sure he saw all of his close relatives one last time.

This case of dying right after important events happens quite often. Many stories have been heard of a relative or friend that died a few days or hours after an important event. According to psychcentral.com, this tends to be the case for nearly everyone. Psychcentral.com says that most people tend to die just after important holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s Day. Birthdays are also included in this list. Other social events like graduations, confirmations, and baptisms are in the list from psychcentral.com too. I have heard a story about an old pharmacist in Amery who was on his death bed. His wife said, “Don’t you die on your birthday.” This man died only three hours after his birthday. His will to live and love for his wife pushed him so he could not die on his birthday. That shows that the will to live is something special.
My other grandfather (Sig) had a different outcome when he met the doors of death. He was not ready to die. As much as a person says they are ready or thinks that they are ready, it won’t change the fact if they are ready or are not. My grandfather had the do not resuscitate band on, but it didn’t matter because Sig fought to live. He can’t help the instincts he has to fight to survive. The will to live kept him going. He now thinks that it would have been better for him to have gone on that day, but he could not help his instincts to survive. This becomes more of a problem now because he is running out of money for his these bills. The bills are piling up daily. Everything bad that happens like stumbling or hitting his hand can cause a major injury. Instead of a bruise, it is a broken wrist. Instead of a bump on his leg, it is a broken patella. But he will keep on fighting as everyone does.
The will not to live can affect people after someone has died also. Many people have heard stories of a grandfather dying and a grandma dying right after. It is like the Johnny and June story. The phrase is, “If you go, I want to go too.” This shows that in many loving relationships, if one dies, the other does not want to live anymore. In some cases, a person can will themselves to die without many life threatening health problems. The person does not want to go through the rest of their life without their significant other.
The will to live can also affect us in situations that bring us near death. When some people were kids, they liked to play the, “Saved your life!” trick on their siblings or friends. This trick is usually when a kid grabs another kid near a railing or the edge of water and shakes them saying, “Saved your life!” If you were the person getting shaken, you felt a jolt fear rush through your body. This probably made the person want to get back at their sibling or friend because this is a real scare. That feeling is a strange feeling. It is this jolt of fear that keeps us alive.
The fear of death can make us do incredible things. A great example is in the movie Batman: Dark Knight Rises. In this movie, Batman goes through a situation that shows this example perfectly. Batman is stuck in a prison under the ground. The only way to get out is to climb and jump from ledge to ledge moving up. These ledges are very far apart and take a lot of will to get to. The prisoners tie a rope to their waste so that if they fall they do not die. Batman put the rope on then tried himself. Batman tried to make the jump from the widest ledge. He could not make it. He tried to do push-ups, crunches, and pull-ups in his cell to increase his strength. The man in the adjacent cell said, “You have fear, that is why you fail.” Batman didn’t understand this saying. He thought it was the fear of dying. He tried to strengthen himself more and more before his next jump. This did not help his chances to make the jump at all though. He missed his second jump. When he got back to his cell he discussed the matter of the jump with another inmate in the cell next to his. This other man said, “You do not fear death. You think this makes you strong. It makes you weak.” The old inmate continued, “How can you move faster than possible, fight longer than possible, without the most powerful impulse being the fear of death.” Batman replied, “I do not fear death. I fear dying in here.” Then the old inmate said to make the jump without the rope and the fear of death will find you again. After taking the advice, Batman attempted to make the jump without the rope tied to him. Batman made this jump and continued being a hero.
The will to live can make people jump higher, run faster, and run longer than they ever thought possible. When put in a situation where he needed to make a jump, Batman didn’t make it. But put in a life or death situation, the will to live drove him to make the jump. It is more powerful than people think.
Another story that comes to mind is the Donor party. Most everybody despises cannibalism and hates to think of it. It is vile and immoral. But, if you were stuck in the freezing cold without anything to eat but your dead friends for days or weeks, what would you do? It sounds sickening and repulsive but if you were in that situation, the will to live would probably overcome your morals.
Not everyone acts the same in life or death situations though. Some will accept it and others will fight on. This may have been the case with the Donor party or may have not. Some members might have had a stronger will than others and some may have not had a strong will. The will for everyone should not be underestimated though.
The will to live is stronger than anything in the world. It can let us die, stretch out our lives, or push us so we don’t have to go through death’s doors to early. This will to live can cause us to do things we never thought possible. It can let us see a relative one last time. It can let you have one last birthday, or one last Christmas with your family. The will to live can keep us here with our loved ones longer than we ever thought. The will to live, is more powerful than anything we know.