Running Head: NARRATIVE AND REFLECTION WRITING

Narrative and Reflection Writing

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NARRATIVE AND REFLECTION WRITING

Acceptance of Death as a Reality of Life

Death is the saddest event we have to deal with in our existence. Just the thought of it

is enough to cast much fear on us. Since we cannot do anything about its occurrence, there is

a need for us to develop a mindset which recognizes death as part of the realities of life. And

as a result of that mindset, we shall accept the place of death in our lives. My experience of

my best friend Kelly, who was also my neighbor, perfectly explains how the acceptance of

other people’s deaths can help us prepare to face our own deaths. We first met five years ago,

when his family moved in to the house at the furthest end of the estate block. It was a small

family. Kelly was their only child. I remember approaching him and offering to help carry

furniture from the truck and into their house. From our first meeting, Kelly struck me as a

friendly guy with a dry sense of humor. Besides, the brief talk I had with him that day

revealed that we shared a lot in common. Both of us loved soccer. As time went by, our

friendship grew stronger and soon, we were great friends. We were so close that we took time

to understand each other. I recall Kelly telling me that his worst fear was death and that he

could not imagine he would die one day. To him, death was a ravenous monster whose object

is to take life unsparingly.

Problems began in his family when his father started experiencing health issues.

Initially, it all started as common flu. He could cough incessantly for prolonged periods of

time. At that time, the doctors believed that his system was just hypersensitive to cold. Later

on, when the situation got worse, he could hardly swallow anything. That was the point when

the doctors suggested he undergoes a scan. The results of the scan were baffling. I remember

Kelly approach me that evening with teary eyes. His voice was shaky as he broke the news.

He appeared totally confused and disorganized. The doctors discovered that his father had

contracted a very rare form of throat cancer whose chance of occurrence is one in a billion.

Sadly, the doctors told him that there was no cure for that type of cancer because of its rarity.
NARRATIVE AND REFLECTION WRITING

They added that he had only three months to live and advised him to get home and “put his

things in order”, in preparation for his death. Slowly, Kelly narrated to me how spellbound

his mum and him were as his dad told them all these. For some time, a pin-drop silence

engulfed the room as they tried to take in the new turn of events. Kelly’s mother immediately

burst into tears as his father tried to assure them all was well and that it was just another

phase of life. I listened attentively as I tried to imagine how bitter that pill was for Kelly to

swallow. Nobody knew that sometime later, I would hear almost the same news from Kelly,

but this time round, he would be the victim.

Ironically, Kelly, who was very scared of death, now had death knocking at the door

of his family. He told me how afraid he was to see his father succumb to the illness. Death

was still a huge mystery to him. He tried to make himself understand just how people’s lives

get nipped off in their buds unexpectedly. To him, death was a cruel ghost which visited

people to rob them of their loved ones and to bring long-lasting separation with friends and

acquaintances. Interestingly, his father remained calm throughout the three months. He never

showed any signs of sadness. It appeared that he remained resigned to his sad fate. Kelly told

me how shortly before his death, his father took much time to finish off projects which had

stalled during the period of his illness. He also made sure that he kept in touch with the rest of

his family and friends to the moment he breathed his last. At his burial, Kelly told me that his

father’s death taught him a lot about death and that from that point onwards, he would not be

scared of death anymore.

About one year later, it happened again. Kelly began developing the same symptoms

like his late father. This time, the doctors performed the scan earlier than they did to his

father. Unfortunately, the diagnosis confirmed that he had the same type of cancer as his

father. Nobody knew that the cancer was genetic and Kelly had lived with it all along.

However, because his was discovered earlier than his father’s, he had six months to live. I
NARRATIVE AND REFLECTION WRITING

noticed a huge difference in how Kelly told me this news. Notably, he was calmer than when

he broke to me news of his father’s diagnosis a year before. Besides, I could not help noticing

the cheerfulness that was within him. He talked with a steady, bright voice. I found it hard to

understand how this could happen. It was hard to believe that Kelly, who shuddered at the

thought of death, now had it staring directly at his face. Truly, the news of his diagnosis left

me so sad that one would think I was the one who got diagnosed. Kelly’s response to my

reaction stuck to me ever since.

He invited me to his house one evening and engaged me in a discussion to explain why the

news of his diagnosis did not make him sad in any way. He told me that since his father’s

death, he viewed death as the ultimate destination in life’s journey. It is like a conveyor belt

which is ever in motion, while we are the items on the belt. There are times when we are new

into the world, and as time passes by, we grow old until the time when death, the monster,

visits us. And that sequence explains the importance of death in bringing a “renewing effect”

to life. He told me that his father’s experience encouraged him to make the best of himself in

every opportunity before he died, that he should always be ready for death, because nobody

knows when they are next. Kelly could never know he could die so soon after his father. He

also challenged me to put more attention to other critical things in life because when death

visits, every human establishment crumbles down like a deck of cards. This conception of life

leads men to the pursuit of the deep yearning of my heart.

As I watched Kelly’s casket being lowered gently into the earth, I could not

help hide the tears that flooded my eyes. I could still hear his voice resonating in my head. He

left a long- lasting impression to me on how to view life. His experience taught me that since

we are temporarily on this earth, I ought to live my life fully. And this viewpoint will ensure

that when death pays me a visit, I shall rest easy knowing that I achieved my best when I was

alive.
NARRATIVE AND REFLECTION WRITING

Reflective Writing

When I listened to Steve Job's speech, I could not help admire how well he used

figures of speech to bring out an understanding of death's reality (Hamburger, 2011).

Specifically, his use of imagery to explain how life is a process that death is the culmination

of the process, helped me understand how death is inevitable. Besides, his use of flashback is

crucial because it develops the storyline, making it easy for the audience to connect the basis

for his understanding of death. These techniques make his story enjoyable to follow. For that

reason, I decided to incorporate figurative language in my work to achieve the same

objective.

I used a variety of literary devices and styles of language. Firstly, I used flashbacks to

help develop the context in which Kelly experienced death. For instance, I used it to reflect

on the diagnosis and subsequent death of Kelly’s father to show how Kelly began treating

death differently. I also used personification, to refer to how the thought of death "struck"

Kelly. This style also points to how Kelly felt the reality of death. I used imagery to see death

as a "ravenous monster," hence depicting the mighty and dreadful nature of death. The simile,

"crumbling down like a deck of cards," reveals how death brings everything to a halt. I used

hyperbole, where I referred to Kelly’s family as being "spellbound" when they discovered

that Kelly’s father got diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and that he had only three months

to live. This style shows how people get shocked at the thought of death. Finally, I likened

life to a conveyor belt to bring out the need to give our best during our lifetime.

I have managed to communicate the reality of death effectively, using choice

language and literary devices. I feel encouraged because I have proven that it is possible to

write a narrative successfully. At first, I had trouble bringing my thoughts together, but once I

began, thoughts started flowing in my mind.

NARRATIVE AND REFLECTION WRITING

Works Cited

Hamburger, Ellis. “'DO WHAT YOU LOVE': Watch Steve Jobs' Legendary Stanford

Commencement Speech In 2005.” Business Insider Australia, Business Insider

Australia, 6 Oct. 2011, www.businessinsider.com.au/do-what-you-love-watch-steve-

jobs-fantastic-stanford-commencement-speech-in-2005-clone-2011-10.