Launch piece: A Memento Mori Manifesto

I wrote this as my final project for a short course on death hosted by Morbid Anatomy. It's a call to action to live well - because you *will* die. It felt right as the launch for this new 26 project!

Photo by v2osk on Unsplash

Wake up.
Watch and learn.
Be curious. 
Follow the white rabbit.
Why not, not why.

Live for the moment. Live in the moment. Live the moment.

Find the beauty in the mundane of every day.
Stop keeping things for special occasions: use the posh stuff now. 
Do what you love, what brings you joy, what sets your soul on fire. Do it now. Right this minute.

Create and be generous.
If you are passionate about it, then it’s not frivolous. 

Save your energy for yourself.
Find peace within, don’t expect others to supply it.
Don’t listen to the clutter, the clanging, the white noise of echo chambers clashing. You do you.
Don’t listen to the voices. Say no. Set boundaries. Be selfish.
Protect your space/time/energy. It’s your time, so spend it doing what’s important to you, not what’s expected of you.

Stop hiding. Stop hermiting. Stop living in the shadows - they do you no favours. They do not protect you; they keep you from life. This one precious life.

Embrace the anti-hustle. 
Connect deeply.
Be present and authentic. 
Don’t rise to the bait.
Let go of shame, judgement and regret. 
Shift the stuckness. 
Tell your loved ones. Leave nothing important unsaid.
If not now, when?
Run with it.

Trust yourself. You know enough. You are enough. 
The clock is not ticking; you will not waste time. Time is a concept, not a resource. Time progresses in a linear way, you can’t stop it and you can’t go back.

Don’t ruminate. Seize the day. Carpe diem.

You are the hero of this story. Live like the credits are coming.
What will you do with your one wild and precious life?

Be yourself. Be constantly discovering yourself.

Keep it simple, stupid. 
Limit tech time. Stop doomscrolling. Your phone is not your life. 
Do you really need it? Then don’t buy it. Life is not measured by consumption.

The journey matters, not the destination. 

Spend time in the physical presence of people you love whenever you can. 
Spend time alone, walking in nature, contemplating, meditating. 
Move, dammit. Just move. 
Decompress.
Create: it’s your life force.
Live life more deliberately.
Rest is not wasting time. 
Carry less baggage, metaphorically and literally. 
Appreciate space. 

What’s meant for you won’t go past you. 

Let go. You can’t predict the future any more than you can control others’ reactions. 

Do, there is no try. Be the dreamer who does.

All of it is a choice. Your choice. All of it. 
See all of the rainbow, not just the monochrome. 

Stand straight, stand tall. Take up space.
Self care is self preservation and that is an act of political warfare.
Let the music move you. Let nature replenish you. 
You come from the earth, and to the earth you will return. Remember this.

Assume the best, not the worst. Be kind. Be patient. Take responsibility. Think for yourself. Stand up for what you believe in, even if it’s difficult. Make a contribution. Get some perspective.

You do not always have to be doing. Sometimes you can just be. 

Reclaim: yourself, your life, your body, your mind, your essence, your energy, your being.
Stay hopeful. Remember you will die, but live with hope, empathy, compassion, and above all, courage. 
You have one life, so live it.

And remember to breathe. 

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About the author

Lauren McMenemy wears many hats: Editor-in-Chief at Trembling With Fear for horrortree.com; PR and marketing for the British Fantasy Society; founder of the Society of Ink Slingers; curator of the Writing the Occult virtual events. With 25+ years as a professional writer across journalism, marketing, and communications, Lauren also works as a coach and mentor to writers looking to achieve goals, get accountability, or get support with their marketing efforts. She writes gothic and folk horror stories for her own amusement, and is currently working on a novel set in the world of the Victorian occult. You’ll find Lauren haunting south London, where she lives with her Doctor Who-obsessed husband, the ghost of their aged black house rabbit, and the entity that lives in the walls.

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