Hereafter

I saw that guy today.

He was walking out of my building, joking and smiling with a few co-workers. He was smartly dressed, fit, and happy. There was a spring in his step and a 'world is my oyster' confidence in his grin. He carried himself with a certainty and a swagger that only the young, successful, and optimistic possess.

I wanted to stop him and talk to him, but I couldn't do it. I wanted to warn him, but it wasn't possible. I desperately wanted to tell him that his life will never be better than it is now. I wanted to tell him to enjoy his fitness and youth, to enjoy how everyone sees him now, to relish and savor every single step he is going to take over the next few years. And I wanted to warn him that it is all going to die without any warning.

He needs to know that his life is going to very soon be as empty and sad as it now is joyous and fun. The people that he thinks love him will stop. The dreams he thinks he is fulfilling are going to shatter. His days are going to be completely hopeless. He will be having lunch alone and not tasting it. He will be crying in his stairwell at work. One day he will be lonely and insignificant and watching people walk out of his building.