Not Just for the Elderly: Contemplating Life's Opportunities
This morning on WPR (Wisconsin Public Radio), there was a fascinating discussion about how we can make the most of our remaining days, weeks, or years of life. Joy Cardin spoke with Dr. David Casarett, associate professor of medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, and Director of research and education Wissahickon Hospice, University of Pennsylvania, who is the author of "Last Acts: Discovering Possibility and Opportunity at the End of Life."
Dr. Casarett shares stories about the terminally ill patients he works with and how they discovered possibility and opportunity at the end of life. The conversation was primarily focused on patients who had received news that their remaining time on earth was limited; however, as one caller pointed out, in essence, everyone's time on earth is limited. It got me to wondering why we might only consider all of the things we love and desire to do when faced with a terminal diagnosis, why more people don't live their life this way regularly? We get so caught up in our day-to-day lives that we often take for granted that life is short.
The discussion also turned to the issue of the importance of advance directives and making our wishes known while we are still able. Why not do all that we can to "go out" on our own terms? This can often be difficult to think about, but very important. Just as we mentioned in a previous entry, we all want to remain in control and continue having our independence as we age; making our wishes known in advance is a great means of ensuring control, even when we may not have much (physically/mentally) when the time comes.
And I'm not just talking about the elderly or those who are terminally ill. We should all take the time to evaluate our values, our priorities, our passions and our purposes in life and take every possible step we can to ensure that these things are woven throughout every facet of our lives, from beginning to end. What do you think?