Consider this, apparently even after death, the human brain lives on for maybe seven minutes, perhaps rehearsing the best memories of your life.

I based that thought on an article written by a science writer, Maryam Clark. She was reviewing a published study in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience that suggest our brains remain active and coordinated during and even just after death itself.

It seems that a Dr. Raul Vicente of the University of Tartu in Estonia was treating an 87-year-old epileptic patient. He had the patient all hooked up and they were using a continuous electroencephalography (EEG) machine to detect seizures. Unfortunately, the man had a heart attack and died during the procedure.

The amazing thing was that for several minutes after the heart actually stopped working, there was still a wide range of brain waves noted. There were several different types of oscillations that suggest all kinds of high-cognitive functions, like memory retrieval, and information processing were still going on.

He concluded that even after our loved ones have “left us,” their brains may be replaying some of the nicest moments they have experienced in their lives.

This week, I am wondering if thinking about the impact of life’s experiences might cause us to cherish the mundane and normal stuff a bit more.

Alfred Hitchcock once remarked that movies are just “life with the dull bits cut out.” We love watching and experiencing first kisses, great conversations, traveling to faraway places and other highlights of life. We don’t really want to think about all the in-between dull parts.

But maybe this week is a great time to pause and consider what we want “running through our minds” for those last seven minutes or so. Rehearsing the ordinary joys of regular living can bring such a smile to our faces.

Laughing with your children whether they are 2, 22 or 42 can bring such joy. Recalling a sweet word whispered by a spouse or an encouraging word from dear friend can make our day. Remembering the little successes can delight our souls. (Can you picture when your child first rode his/her bike without training wheels? Or that moment in your kitchen when you mastered baking fresh bread? Or the first time you lead someone to a saving knowledge of Jesus?)

If our brains do indeed rehearse a bit right before we slip off into eternity, let’s make sure we are “recording” all the right stuff. Holiday seasons can drive us all crazy. Let’s skip that part this year and cherish all the “dull bits.”