John Cena isn’t losing sleep over walking away from WWE. The 17-time World Champion says he already made peace with that chapter closing, and a big reason comes down to one thing: he knows he’s going to die.
During his conversation on Wild Card with Rachel Martin, Cena was asked whether his feelings about death have changed over time. He didn’t dodge it. Cena said he thinks about death often now, but not in some dark, depressing way. For him, it has become a reminder to stop acting like time is unlimited. Cena admitted that when he was younger, he used to joke about not making it to 40. Looking back, he said that mindset was really just an excuse to chase quick thrills.
“Yes, I will die and I think about that often and I never… You know what? I always used to say it out loud like as a young person again, having fun with life like, ‘Oh, I’m never going to make it till I’m 40.’ Um or if I make it till I’m 40, I’ve overstayed my welcome. That was just cannon fodder and to do things that were like dopamine hits. Like that is just a way to say that to be like, ‘This is okay to do cuz I’m not going to make it till 40, right?’”
Cena said that outlook changed as he got older. Now, he sees death as something that gives him gratitude for what he has right now. That includes his WWE career ending without him feeling empty afterward.
“Now my perspective has changed that we all die. We are all going to die. And it gives me gratitude towards the now. It makes me excited for things down the road. It allows me to reflect with great feelings. It’s why I don’t have a void for retirement. I have love and gratitude and thanks.”
That is a pretty big statement from Cena, especially after spending 23 years as one of WWE’s biggest stars. Fans may still be processing his retirement, but Cena clearly isn’t sitting around mourning the end of his in-ring run. He sounds like a man who knows he got more out of wrestling than most people ever will. Cena also said rough days hit differently now because he keeps the bigger picture in mind.
“If my day gets a little gritty, I’m alive. You know? When we start saying like what’s the worst that could happen? You could not be alive.”
Cena knows life is not going to get easier just because he retired from WWE. He said new challenges will keep coming as he gets older, but that is just part of the deal.
“I know life will deal me a whole set of challenges and the challenges will get different exponentially as the days go on and the birthdays pass.”
Cena then explained that he thinks about his own mortality often, and he believes more people should do the same. Not to be morbid, but because it forces people to look at life honestly.
“I think about my mortality often. And I encourage folks to do more of that and not from a morbid sense, from a factual sense.”
Cena closed that thought by saying people act like they have forever, but realizing they don’t can completely change how they value the time they still have.
“We all think we got all the time in the world. And I think when you realize you don’t, it helps you appreciate the time you have. At least from my perspective.”
John Cena’s WWE retirement was always going to be a massive moment for fans, but Cena doesn’t sound like someone desperate to hang onto the past. He sounds grateful for what he had, clear about where he is now, and fully aware that every run eventually ends.
What do you think about John Cena’s outlook on death, gratitude, and life after WWE? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments below.
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