Akif Abdulamir When I was driving past a range of mountains, my colleague said that they reminded him of death. It was an interesting thought. Personally speaking, the sight of mountains gives me a feeling of peace and complete tranquillity. I guess it is about being up there and well above everything else that gives one a sense of power. To me, death does not come into the equation. It is about life in its full zest and enjoying the moment while it lasts. But to him, death is already an ongoing process whose formality will be completed when we finally lower him six feet down. He had another fear but it was not easy for him to put it into words. Every time he goes to bed, he explained, he was terrified of slipping into the dark abyss of nothingness. He expected me to laugh but I looked at him seriously and told him his concern was shared by half of the worlds population. Only he had the courage to bring it out in the open. We all think of our mortality from time to time. That is where religion is important. Life after death is a comfort to many though nobody has been there and come back to tell about it. Pushing these thoughts out of your mind makes you unprepared for the eventuality. It is just like preparing for a big party. You enjoy every minute of it and the journey towards the big day becomes one smooth ride. Except, you will never make the opposite direction once you are in there. In death, I reminded my morbid friend, he should find solace before he starts saddling his horse for the voyage. Grave diggers or cemetery caretakers would testify to that. I talked to a couple of them on different occasions. It started as just a job like any other, but the familiarity of the place had an impact on them. The peace that surrounds a vast ground that cradles so many dead bodies is not a bad proposition after all. Here in Oman, most cemeteries are surrounded by mountains. And that was, perhaps, the psychological connection my friend has with the mountains. Unlike a routine in the office in a high-rise building, cemetery caretakers come to terms with the long silence of mortality. They need not be reminded that the end of the rope terminates in their workplace. To them, there is no twist in the tale. It is just straight talk. When they die, it is just another drive back to the office but this time, the return trip is not in the duty roster. Last time I was in a graveyard burying someone, I let my eyes scan those beautiful mountains that looked down on death. Tall, massive, jagged and dark in appearance. Do they scowl down on dead people or stand there lovingly and vigilant until the Day of Judgment? After carefully hearing me out, my friend was not impressed about my theory about the mountains. I only managed to make him even more miserable than he was. When we parted company that evening, I drove past more ranges of mountains. This time they were wrapped by the darkness but I could see the silhouettes of their peaks as they reach for the stars. From the distance, I could make out the same peaks that floated over the cemetery. I was looking at the other side of the range. The side that faces life and the bustle of the city. The same mountains separate life and death in their full literal meaning. If life is about city noises then it is only fitting that death is about eternal nothingness. There is a thought for you when you go to bed tonight. Khaleej Times