Who do you want to be?… the clock is ticking

by | Aug 1, 2022 | Faith | 8 comments |

To be or not to be, that is not the question here. I would like to live as long as I am useful. But how long will that be?

Of course, no one can tell, but here’s a fun calculator I found via a blog post I read on a site I follow. The calculator is called the death clock, and here’s how it works—example in the above picture. Enter your birth date, sex, BMI, smoking status, and mode (as in your life outlook): normal (neutral), pessimistic, sadistic (I think they meant suicidal), optimistic.

Day of Birth, Month of Birth, Year of Birth, and Sex are givens. BMI and smoking status are life-style choices, which I don’t plan to change. The outlook I have in life is also a choice, but I decided to see what impact the different modes might make in my life expectancy.

With my birthday in 1951, my sex as a female, BMI <25, non-smoker and Normal mode/Neutral Outlook, I should expect to die in 2030—8 years from now. 

When I changed the mode to Pessimistic, I discovered I’d died in 2015. I died in 1990 for Sadistic/Suicidal. And Optimistic? I’m predicted to live until 2050—twenty years longer than “normal.”

I really only have two mode/outlook choices: normal/neutral for likely shorter life or optimistic to increase my chances of serving longer. So, who do I want to be, now that I know the death clock is ticking? 

Optimistic. To share my faith, the hope of Jesus Christ and love of God with others.

Some of my regular readers might remember that Optimism was my New Year word for 2020. How apt that choice turned out to be. My mother died just before the COVID shutdown. Easter 2020, I wrote:

Optimism—though it’s hard when we must cancel family celebrations, Easter egg hunts, and social gatherings.

Optimism—though it’s hard when surprisingly heavy rains cause mud-slides and rain-soaked leaves clog drains, washing out roads.

Optimism—though it’s hard when things don’t go the way we want them to, especially in times of illness, suffering, and death.

How about you? To be optimistic when it’s hard or not to be optimistic when it’s hard? That is the question… and the clock is ticking.

Link up with Five Minute Fridayhttps://fiveminutefriday.com/2022/07/28/fmf-writing-prompt-link-up-be/

8 Comments

  1. Lee Ann L.

    What an interesting app. I had fun playing with it. My outlook in life is slowing changing to optimism.
    ~Your FMF neighbor

    Reply
    • Carole Duff

      Isn’t it interesting how little wakeup calls come to us? Thank you for your comment, my FMF neighbor:-) -C.D.

      Reply
  2. aschmeisser

    I should have died so long before,
    pancreatic cancer, don’t you see,
    but my doc’s gone through that open door
    well before the likes of me,
    and I do not understand
    why a man ’twas loved so dear
    was a part of some weird plan
    that would not keep him here
    while I, a loser, lurch ahead
    writing dreadful poetry…
    why ’tis I should not be dead
    and forgot instead of he?
    Guess I’ll ask the King of Kings
    what the h*** this bloody means.

    Reply
    • Carole Duff

      Love your pithy poetry:-)

      Reply
  3. Gary Fultz

    I am poorly versed on this subject Carole. My father used to tell me I was optimistic about my pessimism.. Not sure what that means but every time I’m in a boat I just know I’m going to out-fish everyone even though I don’t. Being quite a risk taker, I just know the latest mishap was really my last. Now that I talked about it I just jinxed it, even though I’m not superstitious..

    Reply
    • Carole Duff

      Ah yes, Gary, sometimes we wonder: what in the world was I thinking, let alone what am I doing? Do I remember to pray before I act? Ummm….

      Reply
  4. KymPossible

    what an interesting app to play with. If nothing else it does remind me how important it is to be optimistic (which is my usual outlook on life!) and to be healthy (which I’m working on!).
    Visiting from FMF#30

    Reply
    • Carole Duff

      Glad you enjoyed the app, FMF friend. -C.D.

      Reply

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