Comments on: A Life Not Long

By: Teri Pittman

Teri Pittman — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:09:07 +0000

My husband of 37 years died in October, of pnuemonia. He was 58. He always told me that he was ready to die, any time. He had dealt with numerous health issues over the last two years and I wonder if the pnuemonia wasn’t a blessing. When I considered their request to remove one of his damaged lungs, I thought that he likely would not want to live if he could not walk in his beloved woods. I choose to believe there was a reason for his death at this relatively young age.

By: retriever

retriever — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 17:20:13 +0000

Beautiful piece. Thank you. To ponder as I take kid on promised expedition. Echoes many thoughts of ours here caring for elderly parents, grandparents, etc.

All kinds of issues around prolonging and prolonging North American life when so many children and young people in the Third World go without medical care….Of course, honor thy father and mother ( I looked after my grandmothers for years, and doted on them). But the prolonging…(my brother was revived three times after a massive heart attack, “lived” on for 2.25 years on life support with zero brain function)

By: Joe

Joe — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 02:39:10 +0000

My own father died at age 92.

While his last 2 years were not exactly joyful (he had a stomach tube and was not able to do much more than sit up and go to the bathroom and such), he was able to repeatedly express his love for his wife and us kids.

31 years in the USAF and 20 years of public service after that made us all proud to have him as a role model.

I don’t think he would have changed a thing about his life, except maybe to have found a few more things about which to be charitable.

He lived, I think, by determination and faith until he could live no more.

That, in my opinion, is as it should be.