Memento Mori

Memento Mori is a latin phrase meaning ‘remember you will die’. It’s origin is often attributed to the ancient Greek Stoic philosophers. In reading Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus and Seneca,  I have read the phrase often. Initially this seemed quite depressing to me. But the stoics said they kept this thought in their mind, not in a morbid way, but as a reminder to live life to the fullest now, since time on earth is limited. Before knowing that this was part of a philosophy, I have often used the thought in living with a passionate attitude. When I think of friends and family who are now gone, I think how lucky I am to still be living. Instead of getting down, I try to honor the fact that I’m still alive and have the opportunity to take advantage of every day that is given as a gift. So I’ve come to grow fonder of the phrase. Not a bad idea to ‘Memento More!’.