Campaign for Talking about Death and Last Wishes
This off-the-topic post is rather grim for Thanksgiving. If you want a cheery post for the day, don’t read this one.
This holiday season, some people are campaigning for a discussion about death and last wishes via blogs. I have decided to participate because I am always surprised at how few people have thought about their last wishes or the wishes of those whom they love. I am thankful that my Mom and I have had frank conversations about these subjects and I feel like we have a good understanding about what we want. Hopefully, those days are far in the future, but it doesn’t hurt to have some kind of plan in mind early. It saves a lot of stress, trouble, and panic in a time of shock and grieving and alleviates the pressure of having to guess at what someone might want.
While it seems odd to discuss such a heavy topic during holiday gatherings, the festivities provide a great opportunity for the chatter because so many of us are with the people about whom we care and for whom we might be caring or who might be caring for us. I’ve sometimes found that people know what they want, but they just don’t know how to broach the topic because talking about death seems to be taboo. Just do it. “I’ll pass you the potatoes if you tell me whether you’d prefer to die at home, in the hospital, or in hospice.” “Can you believe some people encourage us to talk about death during these joyous holiday celebrations? I’ve been thinking a bit about it, though, and …”
