June 23rd, 2010

One of the most obvious themes in the “LOST” series was the battle between the good guys and the bad guys. The survivors we first met were the good guys (and girls!), though within the group, questions soon arose about who was who. As the series unfolded, we learned that the island’s inhabitants, “The Others,” were the real threats to the survivors, and conflicts grew between the two groups.

For me, the morality play became clearest with the story of the two brothers, the good guy, Jacob (dressed in white) who was literally thrown into the fire of destruction, and the apparent triumph of his counterpart, the evil Man in Black.

I wrote in my book, The Five Ways We Grieve, that when people experience significant loss, like the loss of a loved one, one of the effects is that people often change their values and priorities. The closer we get to realizing our mortality, the more we think about what’s really important in life – and we tend to make more conscious, more purposeful decisions about how to live our lives.

I think that when Jacob died, and Jack assumed the mantle as the island’s next protector, he made a conscious choice to save the island — even though he knew it would cost him his life. He redefined his purpose in life as he had known it and adopted this as his mission.

Think about your values and priorities. Have they been influenced by adverse events in your life? Has losing a loved one, and becoming more aware of your own mortality, changed your mission in life?

I welcome your thoughts and stories.