The Atlantic

There's an article in the March issue of the Atlantic on assisted suicide. Though very well articulated to the benefits of it, I didn't finish reading the article. But it did get me thinking.

In my heart, I wish that I could believe it was okay. I remember going to visit my dad in the hospital when he was dying from cancer. He was really sick for a very long time. He had always been an active man. Not even five kids could wear him out. And then he just laid in a hospital bed. Shut off from sunshine and movement.

I know people watch loved ones as they suffer even worse fates than that. And my heart does wish that we could bring closer what is inevitable.

For me it's not even a question of is it right or wrong and how does God see it, as much as looking at what God's purpose for us on this earth. And it's to learn. And learning causes pain a lot of the time. There are things we learn in our own suffering and there are things we learn in watching the suffering of our loved ones. I know that our experiences and learning are taken with us into eternal life. It is not our place to say when that learning should end.

The article says that assisted suicide is about human rights. We really want to control so many things, even our own deaths. I myself have perfectly thought about how I want to peacefully die on the summer solstice of my 120th year.

I don't know why this article made me want to post something. I think I just get sad when we fail to realize the purpose of our life and try to avoid pain. Pain isn't the purpose, but pain is part of the process. I know I want to enter into eternal life gleaning all that I can from this mortal life.