New Year's Eve. Fireworks are going off, the sound of their explosions on the TV. It's always the same parade of spectacles. First Australia, Japan, India, closely followed by the skyscrapers of Dubai. The assortment of European countries all count down to one. Diez, nine, acht, sept, șase, cinque, vier, treis, dwa, ena. However, we were always last. I realized that the flashes of videos from around the world showed how everyone essentially celebrated the same event, just a different way. I realized that there are infinite ways to celebrate the same thing. Infinity is a scary concept. I like to conceptualize something as a whole. In the analogy of a cave system, I would feel comfortable of having explored every corridor, every room to its full extent. I feel safety in the presence of a finite amount of knowledge. But cursed be life, for managing to avoid the simplicity that we are so accustomed to. Life is the cave you explore and continues to expand. It does not end. It will never end. However, you, the explorer, does. Weariness becomes your master and old age becomes your friend. You start to realize there is no way to go back to the place where you began and you slowly submit your soul to defeat. The sound of muffled explosions go off in the distance. Your family prepares the champagne, the grapes and their smiles. They celebrate as you contemplate. Contemplate the fact that life is too short, to explore the vastness of life. You hear them counting down. And you join them. But when the bell strikes and the clock reaches zero, they are now celebrating something different. Fireworks and bells signifies the coming of a new year. To you? Fireworks and bells are death, taking one step closer. Mocking you in your realization of your impermanence.
