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December 13, 2013
The noise stopped, when I, this angel of death, entered the room.
She had died just a few minutes before my arrival, almost as if she timed her death in her typically considerate manner. It had been six days from the beginning to the end of this, our last journey together.Everyone seemed relieved when I “confirmed” Jane's death, but why do we need doctors to confirm deaths? Even Lulu knew, and she was lying on the pillow next to Jane, whimpering a little. With surprise, I observed that although Jane's eyes were as closed and her lips as sealed as yesterday, somehow, in the freshness of death, her skin was less drawn, more yielding and more alive. The Art of Dying by Gayatri Devi - Roundtable | Lapham’s Quarterly
Posted by gerardvanderleun at December 13, 2013 5:51 AM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.
Your Say
I observed that although Jane's eyes were as closed and her lips as sealed as yesterday, somehow, in the freshness of death, her skin was less drawn, more yielding and more alive.
I've observed that look, that "freshness of death," in my father's face, and my grandma's face, when they died. I think it is the result of being freed from the burdens of life, the result of being at peace with their end.
I would not have thought to describe as the "freshness of death." I think the words are beautifully apt.
Posted by: John Venlet at December 13, 2013 6:13 AM
I thought it was odd when he said, 'even Lulu knew...' If Lulu was a dog or cat not only would she have known, she would have sensed the moment before anyone else.
Posted by: Lorne at December 13, 2013 10:42 AM
Don't feel sad for the departed. If you or they were far away and you hadn't learned of their passing, all the good you remember would still be with you. When you go to work, or travel from your loved ones, you have them with you in your mind. None of that changes after they pass.
Being a twin, I liked the analogy a pastor mentioned at a recent funeral. Think of this world and the people you love as your twin inside the womb with you. At a certain point, you or your twin will be delivered to begin the next phase of their life. Neither twin, at time of birth, knows how much time will pass before the other twin is delivered or how much time you will spend in the new realm. The later-born twin knows nothing of the future state or the impending reuniting with their sibling.
Takes lots of pics and videos. Spend lots of time and make many memories with your loved ones. If you can't do that yous can remember or imagine.
Posted by: Scott M at December 13, 2013 3:59 PM