“Watching Florida” posted a comment in response to my prior entry about the death of Dr. Ronald Cranford that I feel deserves comment, so I am moving it into the…
Medical expert in Terry Schiavo case diesAssociated PressMINNEAPOLIS – Neurologist Dr. Ronald Cranford, one of the nation’s leading medical ethicists and right-to-die advocates, died Wednesday at a hospice in Edina,…
I’m going to be having a birthday in a few months. A really BIG birthday. Frankly, I don’t even want to think about it. But here’s the thing: I’m the…
It has been four (4) months since my mother, Ethel, died. She left this world on October 13, 2005, but she left her family long before that.
She left us very slowly, very gradually, literally inching further and further away until she finally retreated into a little corner of her own mind, her own universe, where we could no longer connect with her.
And then I did something I never thought I could ever find myself doing: I wished that she would die.
Bob and Mary Schindler spoke at Life Legal Defense Foundation’s (“LLDF”) annual dinner on November 12, 2005, in Berkeley. It was my privilege to finally meet them face to face, and have a little time to visit with them.
The first thing that struck me about the Schindlers is that they appeared to be utterly exhausted — physically, mentally, emotionally. Since Terri’s death last March, they have been traveling around the country speaking about the case, her death, and doing their best to educate families about the dangers they could face if a loved one becomes incapacitated. As I looked into their eyes and listened to them speak, it seemed incomprehensible to me that either of them could even get out of bed in the morning and concluded that they must be carrying on through a combination of sheer iron will and a deeply-held faith.
I extend my thanks to all of you who have expressed such kind thoughts and remembrances in the past couple of weeks. I appreciate your reaching out more than I can describe and will write more later about “the long good-bye,” as Nancy Reagan aptly termed it, we said to my mother over a period of several years.
In tribute to her, I share here the eulogy that was read at the celebration of her life, a worship in memoriam, on October 19, 2005:
Bob and Mary Schindler will be the featured speakers at the annuel fund-raising dinner for Life Legal Defense Foundation (LLDF), based in Napa, on November 12, 2005.
I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity to meet the Schindlers and hear them tell the story of their battle to save their daughter’s life, as well as the horrifying manner in which she spent her last days on earth.