When I was very young I did the same thing. I lived in California when most of the many beaches were empty most of the time. Later on they got crowded and I wanted to avoid them anyway.
I do understand still how people look at this. But I must add that once a person has had cancer, or perhaps worse lost someone close to cancer, it should make him sit up and take notice. Life in this flesh may not be the most important thing, but it is a definite part of our stewardship... as I see it.
Foolish things we have done when we were young. I remember getting drunk with a buddy in Danang, South Viet Nam and walking the dark streets. At each intersection we would purposely choose the darkest street to continue our drunken jaunt. Foolish we were. I was not serving God in any measure at that time. But, He brought me through it... and I am here today.