I just wanna live until I die

I was driving home from a meeting today with the radio playing. I wasn't really listening, sorta lost in my own thoughts when I heard a line from a song that caught my attention. In a thick country twang, a voice sang, "I just want to live until I die." I have no clue who sings it or what the rest of the song was about but that one line got me thinking: How many of us stop living long before we actually die? And what does it really mean to be alive? Is it just a matter of eating and breathing? Is it a matter of functioning mental capacities? Is it a matter of being happy? Is it about being in relationship with our family? What is it that makes us truly alive?

When I think of someone who's really alive, I think of someone who has a clear purpose in life, someone who makes intentional choices about what they are not going to do as much as they decide what they are going to do. I think of someone who is willing to risk trying new things. I think of someone who has an understanding that we are called to community and is intentional about developing their relationships with other people. But I still think there's something missing in that description.

What do you think is "living until I die"? If you know what the name of the song is or who sings it feel free to include that too.