
April 8th, 2004, 01:10 PM
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OT LIfe's a bitch
"Wolfgang" wrote in message
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"Mike Connor" wrote in message
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"Wolfgang" schrieb im Newsbeitrag
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Most of us probably see it somewhat differently than they did.
Wolfgang
funny world
I donīt think its all that funny mostly, but sometimes it is. Modern (
yeah
well, if you can call opium modern)drugs are so good that the pain is
not
really an issue. The worst thing is experiencing the fear that others
have
of losing their minds, or becoming "junkies".
They donīt care about the pain, or even about dying, but they really
care
about becoming a helpless gibbering vegetable, or even just losing
control
of their normal bodily functions. For many, the first time they lose
control of their bowels,is the worst thing that ever happened to them.
It
does not "hurt", but actually it hurts worse than anything else.It is
demeaning, to a massive extent, and is the first real sign that one is
dependent on others.
Anybody who has experience of people dying of cancer, and tells you he
would
"prefer to die of cancer" is either a liar, or an abject fool.
Of course, perhaps I just see it differently.
The dying ends, eventually, for the dead. Not so for the living. I guess
there will always be differences of opinion concerning what lingers
longest......or hardest.
Jack Fisher spoke his last words about twenty-four hours before he died.
He
had been lying mostly motionless, asleep or unconscious (for what the
difference is worth) for about two days. Suddenly, and entirely without
warning, he sat bolt upright in bed and made a horrible croaking noise.
Jay
and I were both so shocked by the sudden levitation of Jack's cadaverous
form and the strange sounds emanating from his dry throat through a
skeletal
face that we just sat there stunned, like we'd been hit with a ****ing
hammer, until on the third repetition we finally understood that he was
saying, "I gotta ****!"
We lifted him as gently as possible onto the bed pan and held him there
for
several minutes until he passed out, having produced nothing worthy of
note.
Gently, again, we laid him down on his back, crossed his arms on his chest
and covered him with a blanket. He never moved again.
Anyone witnessing the scene (there was actually no one else present) would
have agreed with the three of us (had it occurred to any of us to think
about it) that there was nothing the least bit amusing about the incident.
These day, whenever I think about, I have to suppress a snort and a giggle
(Jack would have too), and tears. 
Wolfgang
thanks. it takes a sophisticated person to be able to feel, identify, and
entertain more than one emotion at a time.
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