Carlos Castaneda's shaman Don Juan recommends taking death as an advisor: "Death is our eternal companion. It is always to our left, at an arm's length. It has always been watching you. It always will until the day it taps you. The thing to do when you're impatient is... to turn to your left and ask advice from your death. An immense amount of pettiness is dropped if your death makes a gesture to you, or if you catch a glimpse of it, or if you just catch the feeling that your companion is there watching you.