Earlier this month I learned a dear friend had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. She has been given less than six months to live as the cancer has fully permeated her liver and pancreas.

Since the diagnosis, her health has rapidly declined and the hope of realizing several more months of life is quickly waning.

The fear of death holds a mighty grip because what lies beyond our physical existence is basically unknown and fear of the unknown can be debilitating and torturous.

Our spiritual beliefs play a major role in how we view death and how we respond when we are faced with it. Those who believe that physical death is the absolute end of existence may live their remaining days or months in terror, anger, and regret, and assume the role of a victim, the recipient of a ruthless injustice.

There are others who believe that our physical time on earth is but a learning opportunity on the path towards higher awareness and evolution.

Everything in the universe is made up of energy, us included. There is an energy that brought us to earth in the form of a human being and this same energy will move us into our next form whatever that may be.

Do you know where you were before you came to earth? Before you materialized here in the form of a human? If you knew what to expect on earth prior to arriving would you have jumped at the chance? Imagine looking through the classifieds in your previous existence and you read an ad that says,

Opportunity to join fast-paced, tumultuous planet where you will be exposed to disease, war, pain, hunger, fear and hatred. You will arrive without skill or protection and must rely solely on a more developed member of your species for food, shelter, comfort and safety. You will not be able to feed or care for yourself during your first few years of life and will not have the cognitive ability to recognize danger or threat.

You may spend your developing years in a loving environment or in one filled with hatred, violence and pain.

We cannot guarantee your physical form. You may arrive without limbs, possibly be blind or deaf or suffer a form of impairment or mutilation that might create challenges or hardship for you. We cannot guarantee you love, respect or an enjoyable voyage. It will be the role of a dice.

You will be given a heart that can be broken and your spirit will be challenged regularly. You will arrive on earth completely exposed, unprepared and without a survival handbook. You will be expected to learn, grow, survive on your own and make the most with what you have.

You are offered no guarantees and you cannot come back when you wish. You are committed for an undetermined period of time and may not return until you are called.

If this sounds like something you're interested in, please sign on the dotted line below and within seconds, you will be transported to earth in the form of a human being.

Good luck.

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If you knew what to expect prior to joining earth, would you have signed up? The ad above contains no exaggeration or false statements. It is reality as we know it.

As human beings we also experience love, comfort, security, happiness, accomplishment, learning, discovery, fun, pleasure, elation, pride, success, growth and reward.

I would like to offer an alternative perspective if I may, a suggestion, something to contemplate.

What if we are in the earth school to experience, learn, grow and develop? What if it is a playground and a learning institution? Life is nothing more than a series of experiences. That is what we do while we're here. We do nothing else but create experiences.

Sometimes we may be called back earlier than we'd like to be and although earth can be scary and unpredictable, we would rather be here where we have accepted our position than to head into the unknown.

What if you had a glimpse of where you were going? Would it make your transition easier?

What if physical death means you are returning to your original, energy state? Your real home? What if you knew you had earned a special pair of wings and were being advanced to the next level in your evolution?

In your original state, you experience no physical or emotional pain. You understand that everything is okay and that human life is a wonderful experience. You may regret that you will no longer be there for your children or loved ones, but what makes you think you won't?

In your original form, you may be even closer to those you love and capable of guiding them with more success than you ever could in human form.

You may provide the inspiration a songwriter receives when she writes a beautiful song that will ease the pain of many and give hope and inspiration to your child in a time of despair.

You may be that intuitive voice that tells a loved one to turn left instead of right, thus avoiding a tragic accident.

You may be the gentle wind that blows through the hair of your grandchild as he rides his bicycle across a field.

You may orchestrate that serendipitous meeting between your child and his soul mate and future life partner.

Contemplate death as a transformation; the transition from one form of being to another. There is no end because life is infinite. Energy is transferred, not "snuffed out."

When a tree dies, it returns to the earth in an altered state and rises again in new form. It nourishes the earth that gave it life and contributes to the new life of plants, flowers and trees in the form of food and nourishment. That tree that once stood 100 feet tall now lives in the leaves of the beautiful flowers and greenery that share its home.

Many ask, "Why does anyone have to suffer?" Why do cancer, disease and natural tragedies have to be so merciless, so cruel?

Once we have transitioned to our new form, our human experience will be the equivalent in time to the blip on a radar screen, the blink of an eye.

While on earth, the suffering may seem endless because we are bound by time and space, but outside of the physical world, time does not exist.

Maybe these seeming injustices are played out to bring us back to what is truly important and what we are here to learn. Sometimes we get caught up in who has the bigger home, the fastest car, the prettiest wife, the more prestigious title, and when we are faced with the impending loss of a loved one or watching those we love suffer, we are forced to realize that nothing of material significance really matters.

What if life does not end, but merely changes form? What if we do not cease to exist, but transform? We leave our physical limitations and pain behind and operate from a higher awareness, an enlightened plane, an existence without borders?

Cancer, disease, disaster and tragedy may not be a means of punishment, but a bold reminder that we must live life to the fullest, to appreciate all that we have and to show love, compassion and acceptance for our fellow human beings.

Perhaps we should celebrate when a loved one receives her wings because she has been called home. Maybe we should not fear receiving a call when our time comes because we will have learned our valuable lessons and will be promoted to the next level of growth.

Laurie Hayes works with small and home-based business owners who feel stuck. To receive valuable tips, strategies and techniques designed to grow a successful business without sacrificing quality of life, subscribe to her free bi-weekly newsletter at http://www.wheretheheartis-lifecoaching.com