Sunday, August 16, 2015

articles on dying

http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/09/why-i-hope-to-die-at-75/379329/

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/14/zen-and-the-art-of-dying-well/?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=1


Being Mortal

http://www.brainpickings.org/2015/08/06/diane-ackerman-a-natural-history-of-the-senses-2/?mc_cid=c738efb0b7&mc_eid=3c673841e9

anam cara  http://www.brainpickings.org/2015/08/12/anam-cara-john-o-donohue-soul-friend/?mc_cid=c738efb0b7&mc_eid=3c673841e9

When dying comes into the picture, there’s simply no firm ground to stand on. It’s that way with life too, but much easier to pretend otherwise."
To be confronted with a serious illness is to be confronted with a fear of death for most of us. How do we balance hope with realism? And how do we age with grace? Drawing on Atul Gawande's book, Mary Jo Bennett highlights some ways our culture is evolving in its relationship with death.http://www.onbeing.org/blog/the-landmark-of-aging-with-grace/7721
In his epilogue, Atul Gawande summarizes the vital questions to ask ourselves when faced with serious sickness:
“What is your understanding of the situation and its potential outcomes? What are the trade-offs you are willing to make and not willing to make? And what is the course of action that best serves this understanding?”
Although this type of inquiry can be a useful assessment tool and is certainly better than avoiding the elephant in the room altogether, it is not going to guarantee that events will unfold in accordance with our wishes. It’s impossible to predict what the trade-offs will cost us. Nor can we accurately predict how any course of action will match up with our expectations and hopes. If we are to be clearly honest, when dying comes into the picture, there’s simply no firm ground to stand on. It’s that way with life too, but much easier to pretend otherwise.
http://www.onbeing.org/search/site/dying   lots of articles here

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