3.02.2011

Death with Dignity

Though dignified people sometimes suffer,
there is no dignity found in suffering,
The last act of self-determination,
is blocked by many professing a god's love,
One's misery must serve as a lesson and,
must never be shortened by thine own hand,
Lest he demonstrate the depth of his love,
through eternal torment and endless fire,
The only lesson given is that we are,
but property to a divine caprice,
Might think differently were they the object lesson,
But true love will pay any price demanded,
your beloved from their pain to deliver,
The eternal torment is that emptiness,
Mere echos of her voice within can never fill.

2 comments:

Michael Lockridge said...

This is, indeed, a thing I do not understand. I recently had to have my dog "put to sleep." I make no bones about it. I had him killed. His cancer had reached the point where he could no longer stomach food. He was aged, and now life was not even nominally pleasant for him.

It was heart-wrenching, but I would not choose to prolong his suffering and watch him waste away in suffering. I made a decision for him which I believe to be humane.

My family history indicates that I will most probably die of some form of cancer. I will not have the option of that dignity. Well, perhaps I will. We are moving to Oregon once this California house sells.

Suicide should not be easy, a choice made capriciously when better options exist. However, it should not be denied. The current system causes making that choice to be burdensome for loved ones. We need better options.

Pliny-the-in-Between said...

I could not agree more. In Oregon many of the people who go through the process to get a prescription via our Death with Dignity Act, never use it but they seem to be comforted by the fact that they have options.