Fear of aging and death

I'm one of those people who has worried about death my entire life. Not very productive, you say. We're all going to die sometime, right?

I do not have a strong religious belief, so I don't have a comfort that the essence of who I am will continue to exist after my corporeal self disintegrates. I like the idea of reincarnation a lot.

I've lost my parents in the past 10 years, and most of my adult relatives (I've got one uncle and aunt, in their late 80s and early 90s, still hanging on, but that's it.

I've lost beloved pets, and have another one who will probably not be with us for much longer (chronic renal failure). I keep thinking about my own death, and hating the idea of it. I can't imagine not being alive and aware.

Sliding down the mountain

The mountain is a metaphor for life, and this blog is my way of dealing with aging, and all that it entails, both positive and negative.

Because I will be talking frankly about things that are very personal to me, I am not going to identify myself. Just consider me everyman -- or everywoman -- if you like.

What should you know about me? I don't think you need to know much, other than I turned 60 in February of this year. I'm happily married, have one adult daughter who doesn't live nearby, and we share our lives with two collies and one cat.

That's probably enough to get started, don't you think?