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March 28, 2005 1:36 PM- my living will

Dear Zealots, Control Freaks, Souless Government Officials, Heartless Members of the Medical Community, Ambulance Chasers and anyone else who feels they have a right to tell me how to live and die,

This is my Living Will.

I have no need to address this letter to my husband or to anyone in my actual family as they all know me well-enough and respect me well-enough to make this an issue for you, Nosey-Parker strangers, and you alone.

If you are reading this, chances are I am not entirely dead. Obviously, I am dead enough that you cannot engage me in a conversation about my options so let's get right down to it, shall we?

All of you, I know, live in a wonderful world where birds and bunnies help you get dressed each day and your lovely, well-behaved children are always cheerful and family get-togethers are a rollicking good time. Bully for you. Here's the thing you need to understand. Life for me is painful. Always. Relentlessly. Unequivacably. The absurdity, the disappointments, the injustice, the cruelty, the alienation--- perhaps if I had a better developed sense of humor it wouldn't get me down. Unfortunately, my sense of humor is weak and puny and invariably fails me in the face of crisis. What does make it all bearable are the small pleasures. Pleasures that are entirely dependent upon my fully functioning human form.

So, if I can't get out of bed, walk, talk, smell fresh cut flowers, taste crispy coconut macaroons, or have an orgasm*-- then it is time to PULL THE PLUG.

Capiche? Good. That is all.

*Obvs, this is not a small pleasure, but somehow it never comes up in conversation about why NOT to keep someone hooked up to a life-support system so I thought I'd make mention of it.

got 2 cents?



•  •  •  •

gatsby says:
who ever says, "if it comes down to it, i'd like to be kept alive via machines and tubes."
posted on: March 28

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samantha says:
I love the phrase, 'nosy-parker'. The Schiavo case is such a nightmare. A nightmare with many, many talking heads. And yet I keep listening.
posted on: March 28

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Croila says:
To be honest, if I'm so far gone that I'm not aware of what's happening to me, I don't care if I'm kept alive or not. What ever's easiest/least awful for my family. To me it's like caring whether you get buried or cremated: who's to care? You won't know about it. Just my opinion...
posted on: March 28

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Margaret says:
My parents and I went through this with my younger brother and pulled the plug, without really having any qualms about doing so. (not saying it was easy, it was just the right thing to do) Because of my past history, I delved a lot into the case and have actually read the guardian ad litem's report where the parents tell him(or her, I don't recall) that they don't really care what Terri would have wanted, they derive pleasure from her being "alive"and wouldn't pull the plug even if they knew she would have preferred that. They also stated that if she developed gangrene, they would have every limb amputated; if she had heart problems, they would have open heart surgery on her. It was pathological, almost as though she were their pet. It is all about them, and not about her. C'est triste.
posted on: March 28

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stephanie says:
Such a horrible situation. I can't NOT pay attention to it. Sad for all involved, but made much, much, much more painful by the likes of Hannity and Colmes staked out in front, and Randall Terry claiming to the family spokesman. Shudder. If this ever happens to me, just "trip" over the cord and send the staff out for happy hour on me. Hey freaks, what about the *rest* of the people in the hospice? Don't you think they are on the edge of life and death? Where are you signs for them? Her parents, at this point, seem to be fighting for the sake of fighting. It's like they don't know what else to do with their lives.
posted on: March 28

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Heather says:
My dad came up with a slogan for this sort of situation, to help us all remember his wishes. I'm planning to use it on my living will. "When in doubt, lights out."
posted on: March 28

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Gale says:
I'm down with the macaroons and the orgasms. If I can't do either of those, stick a fork in me: I'm done.
posted on: March 29

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Chrishawn says:
Such a sad situation.
posted on: March 30

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Sorry, comments are now closed.




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