I love Ann Voskamp. Nearly everything she writes resonates with me on such a visceral level. That being said, I respect her (and her friends) opinion of Brittany Maynards choice but completely disagree with it. When you watch an otherwise healthy loved one die, slowly...agonizingly...you would never wish it on anyone. We all hope that we will go gentle into that good night, but the reality is, cancer robs us of that. Yes, there is a beauty in watching someone take their last breaths and transition to death, but take it from me: its pure hell. The only comparison I have is true labor. What my family and I witnessed was so intensely painful and laborious, I almost feel as though verbalizing it here is blasphemous. Yes, I wanted my sweet, healthy, dignified father to die with dignity, but more than anything, I wanted him to die in peace. Neither happened. I thought I knew what it would be like - but nothing I had ever seen prepared me for it, for the amount of morphine to be palative enough that Baptist Hospital would need to restock, for the delusions, for our worst fears realized. We prayed and begged for death....for mercy. Had there been an option to end the inevitable early, I think he would have taken it. It certainly wouldnt have diminished our final moments with him. We knew he was going to be with god. He knew. Hes still my dad, for crying out loud...the beauty would be there regardless.
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 00:27:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015