In our January ad, Roar challenges all of us to look anew at the inevitable cycle of death and rebirth. It is also our take on ringing in the New Year with the traditional symbol of the Grim Reaper and the baby. As a company, we celebrate this cycle as a challenge to ourselves to continuously embrace this cycle of change and transformation. By giving up our attachment to sameness and not fearing the concept of dying, we unleash the creative possibilities and potential within each of us in remarkable ways.

The image in the ad is meant to move us beyond the superficial to some real discovery. Just as all the models in the photo have different expressions and emotions, what they were feeling in that moment was real. How we confront this notion of death and impermanence can quite revealing. Some in the photo could not mask their sadness and grief, such as the blond woman who was so upset that she couldn't look into the camera. Others had more lighthearted expressions or stood in pensive silence. Most strikingly, the girl shown smelling the rose seems to challenge all of us to do just that-to savor the moment and celebrate on an essential level what this journey of life offers to us.

Trust me, the model who had to climb into that coffin did not get off so easy. I know because that person just happens to be me. The first few moments were especially difficult. It immediately brought back fresh memories of the funerals for my brothers and my father, who were taken away from our family all too early. But remarkably, that feeling of deep sadness gave way very quickly to a much different perspective-first, to peace and then, liberation.

This is one time we’re not selling shirts. Nurture your spirit. Live fully.