Immortality

     I've sometimes wondered about the true meaning of immortality. When we are shown immortality in movies, television, comics, books, etc. we see a character that does not die no matter what happens, or we see someone who has become immortal through death such as a vampire for example. The thought of living forever is shown all throughout human history,  there have been stories of the ones who cannot die. Obviously, in this bloggers opinion, these stories are told to us because we are, in fact, going to die.
     I read the book "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman about 2 years ago, and it got me thinking. These Gods in the book, while able to live for a long time,( much longer than the regular, everyday asshole), are still in danger of shuffling off the mortal coil.

This gave me pause.

     The Gods lived on for so long in the New World because their stories were carried over into America, and so, the Gods themselves traveled to America in the minds of the people who believed in them. It was only when the last of the followers died, did the Gods truly fade into non-existence. The memory is what kept the God alive. As long as someone still remembered them, they wouldn't fade into the mist. As stated earlier,  this gave me pause. It is possible to obtain immortality without having to go through some ridiculous test of strength and faith. We are remembered in the minds of our friends and family, as well as the minds of our enemies. We live rent-free somewhere in the memory parts of the brain, immortal in impervious to anything until we are forgotten.
     Interesting theory I know, if only for the warm fuzzy feeling that we get when we think of the ones we love that have rode on ahead on the trail of life. They live on in our hearts and minds, for as long as we choose to carry them there.
     So, the next time you feel sad, about the fact that you are going to die, and you haven't met a vampiric savior who will grant you the gift of the undead, remember that while you may not be physically down the street, you will still have a home in someones heart, and there, you change from a simple mortal into something much greater, something much more powerful. You turn into an idea. And while you can kill a man, you cannot kill what he stands for.