there is a song by the band called Morpheus, written and sung by Mark Sandman

When he was younger, he was a cab driver and got stabbed in the chest and almost died. He knew his life would not be as long as it should have been and always made sure to live it to the fullest.

He died on stage performing

one of his songs

Do not go quietly unto your grave

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP7AOzzSRx4

I think of this song a lot, this poem hits that same mark for me

I am also reminded of Tecumseh and his famous speech. I have found this to be so important that I hold it deep to my core. It is this same feeling

“So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide. Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, even a stranger, when in a lonely place. Show respect to all people and grovel to none. When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself. Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools and robs the spirit of its vision. When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home.”

This is good medicine, thanks for sharing the poem

"Rage against the dying of the light" is one of the all-time greatest lines.

Favorite use of this:

As Simple bank was being shut down, the sysadmin turning off servers etc replaced the site with the poem.

While dns forwarded to PNC or whatever, anyone hitting the server directly, a nerd like me for example, would get the poem as the dying breath from a service that had been loved by many.

I found the excerpt in the movie, Interstellar particularly moving.

I remember we read this for a middleschool emglish class. Along with To Build a Fire, Leiningen Versus the Ants among other works.

I used to subscribe to this ideology. Now, I almost can’t wait.

Remember Man as you go by
As you are now so once was I
As I am now so shall you be,
Prepare yourself to follow me