Life After Life

 I recently finished reading Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, a book about how your life can change based on the decisions you make. It's almost like reincarnation but instead of returning as the same soul in a different body, the protagonist is the same soul in the same body who gets multiple chances at life. The story follows each life as it unfolds and the different decisions that get made to get to that point and how it effects everything in it's entirety.

 This of course got me thinking about my own life, and the decisions I have made to be where I am. I, of course, like to think that my life is unfolding exactly as it should be and really don't we all? This book shows how even the smallest decision can change the course of our lives for better or for worse.

 One of the symbols used in this book is Ouroboros, the snake that eats it's tail. This is one of my all time favorite symbols. The Ouroboros symbolizes eternal renewal, a cyclical view of life or reincarnation. It represents the formless disorder that surrounds the orderly world and it's renewal.
This symbology is found all around us, think about the seasons, winter brings death and spring brings rebirth or think about how starting January 1st we make resolutions for the new year and spend time reflecting on the decisions we made, what worked and what didn't. The Ouroboros also symbolizes that all is one, meaning everything in the universe is connected.

 Life After Life is one of those books that really get you thinking, not only about the characters in the novel, but the possibilities in your own life and what that life might look like if we had an endless queue of chances to do things a little differently. Afterall you just never know, much like the Ouroboros suggests, the possibilities are endless.