The sum of our fears is the knowledge of our vulnerability to random misfortune and the certainty of our eventual mortality. If we can take comfort and meaning from some religious belief with its promise of eternal life, so much the better. But even skeptics can learn to savor the moments of pleasure that our brief lives contain. It is not denial but courage that allows us to do this. That and an unwillingness to let the present moment be drained of joy by fear of the future or regret for the past.
