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Hard Questions
By Mona Lease
Hi, all!! As I write this, it's July 4th - Independence Day. But what
do those words really mean? Surely I know they mean independence from
England - from when England thought they could tax the bejesus out of
us for the tea we desired. Our collective response to that was The
Boston Tea Party. But, how independent are we - really? Here's why I
wonder and ask:
I attended a graveside service recently. There was no Pastor (or
Reverend, Father, etc). There was a Funeral Director and a handful of
family and friends. Later, at the Fellowship Dinner - I was shown a
couple of pictures of the deceased. They were from a birthday
celebration for the now-deceased from roughly a year previous to his
death. He looked bad - really bad. Somehow he was getting pain-killers
and had self-medicated himself to the end. Now - here we go with the
"rights" thing. And - are we independent of each other?
Using the above case - we'll call him Ziggy - what rights does Ziggy
really have? Does he have the right to control his body? (He can't bear
children so that argument is null. I heard your "duh!"). Whatever he
puts in his body will only affect him - in any way - adversely or not.
He is the one to feel what we might call "original pain" or, that pain
which starts the process. Those watching feel a "ripple effect" - if
you will. There are those odd few who will feel "sympathy pains" - like
an expectant Father will experience morning sickness along with his
wife. Those are exceptions though. The rest of us feel an "emotional
response"...helplessness, sorrow, anger (usually due to "All of the Drs
out there and you choose to suffer?" type thing), etc.
We are supposed to have the right in our USA to work and live how we
want and choose. Our ability to go from social status to social status
(poor man/woman working their way up the socio-economic ladder to
become a trillionaire) is what is supposed to set us (USA) apart from
other countries around the world. It's most certainly what keeps people
streaming across our borders. (Which is another question: Do the
"illegals" have the right to spend their money how they want? Remember
they largely work on turkey farms, hog farms, poultry farms, dairy
farms and landscaping. Do they have the right to send their money back
to their family in another country?). OK - back to:
If we have the right to live our life how we choose, (many business
owners here in Darke County have gasped and sputtered when their
kiddies have said they did not want to be a part of the family
business) then shouldn't we have the right to "die as we choose?" What
does "death with dignity" really mean? Does that only apply after a
person dies? As in Ziggy's case - I knew he was ill. But, I did not
know how ill he really was. He kept up with his normal routine until
about two weeks before he died. Does "death with dignity" only apply to
the corpse and a "funeral situation?" Much to the chagrin of family,
friends, and the IRS - there are those who have had a Dr write out a
"standing order" for pain-killers for the one dying - and those same
ones who received the medicine, have left their entire estate...bank
accounts, cars, land, paintings, jewelry, etc - to a favored charity.
Maybe it all comes down to this: Do we honor the wishes of the sufferer
and/or deceased - or do we honor our wishes? I just wondered what you
readers thought. I do know "what we think is best" and what someone -
living and now deceased wanted or thought was best - are rarely the
same thing.
Remember the kiddies and our service people. Take good care of the
furry and feathered ones out there. Be safe and healthy. See ya next
time. Ever Toodles!!
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