Interesting thoughts Travis. Mine are similar but with some key differences.
The question of life after death has intrigued me for the longest time and one I've always been extremely curious to find the answer to. I didn't think it was possible to get a definitive answer (and in some ways still don't) but to me the best evidence for a yes or no answer comes from studying paranormal phenomena like the near-death experience (NDE).
To take a step back, modern science would have us believe that everything is physical, that all experience and reality, at a fundamental level, are tiny electrons/protons/neutrons and even tinier quarks/leptons/bosons/etc...This is an assumption of course, because there may be things even more fundamental that we cannot detect like say consciousness or mind or spirit, for example. Modern science would also have us believe that the human brain is responsible for consciousness, so once that goes, so does our experience and our 'self'. Citing examples of people with brain damage and having corresponding deficiencies in experience and ability, based on the location of the damage, seem compelling to argue for this theory. However, correlation does not imply causation, and therefore it is merely a good assumption.
I prefer to think of the analogy of the brain being equivalent to a radio. The radio can receive signals and broadcast them to be experienced, but the radio is not producing the signal and subsequent audio transmission. If, say, the radio falls and gets damaged, perhaps a range of frequency will be lost or the radio can no longer play as loudly. The signal is fine but the receiver/transmitter is not. Same can be true of consciousness. It may be fine and intact but the body with which it experiences life on Earth / this reality is dying or dead. I think at that point consciousness moves on to another realm, one where the limitations of a physical world are no longer present.
I base this on researching NDEs and related phenomena. I won't go into fine detail due to time constraints, but the basic idea is that there are times when people have these experiences of being very close to death or clinically dead, get resuscitated, then tell of their experience with elements that can be corroborated by hospital staff (as these typically take place in a hospital) and/or relatives in the nearby vicinity. There are many cases of this happening and each case needs to be investigated and evaluated separately, but having read probably at least 100-200 cases, I feel confident that there is something to them and it's not all a fluke or fraud or something else.
I don't expect people to believe it based on what I have said, nor would I want anyone to really. I would hope people investigate it for themselves to see if there is merit because if there is, the conclusions would be life-changing. Some suggested readings to start would be these books:
https://www.amazon.com/Lessons-Light-Learn-Near-Death-Experience/dp/1930491115/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501113341&sr=8-1&keywords=lessons+from+the+light
https://www.amazon.com/Irreducible-Mind-Toward-Psychology-Century/dp/1442202068/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501113427&sr=8-1&keywords=irreducible+mind
https://www.amazon.com/End-Materialism-Evidence-Paranormal-Bringing/dp/1572246456/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501113369&sr=8-1&keywords=the+end+of+materialism