Ecclesiastes 11:9 - 12:8 / Luke 9:43-45
Psalm 90:10 says that the length of our days is 70 years, and 80 for those who are strong.
With modern healthcare and supplements, the average lifespan may even go beyond 80 years.
But length of life is not necessarily synonymous with quality of life or happiness in life.
The younger years may be filled with vigour and adventure, followed on by years of achievement and fulfillment.
But the sunshine and confidence does not last a whole lifetime.
The 1st reading gives a grim reminder: Yet youth, the age of dark hair, is vanity. And remember your creator in the days of your youth, before evil days and the years approach when you say “These give me no pleasure”.
It is a grim reminder of the reality of life, that like the sun rises in the morning and everything is bright and fresh, the sun will also set and the darkness of the evening will approach.
And in the gospel, when everyone was full of admiration for all He did, Jesus reminded His disciples of the suffering that was awaiting Him.
Just as life on earth has a beginning, life also will have an ending.
It is not about how many years of life we had, but how much life were in those years.
With Jesus, we know we will have life and life to the full, here as well as in the hereafter.