Making Plans

This may come across morbid, but I'll say it any way...

We are currently on death watch for my grandmother-in-law.

Nana is 94 years old and from her bed in the nursing home, has refused food, water and medication for the last several days. Simply put, she's lost the will to live. Yet, she's in no pain, she's not dying from cancer or anything-she's just very, very old (and as we all know, age isn't about years, but aboutthe life in those years)

This morning over coffee, we got today's update on Nana's condition. Stable. This is actually bad news...she's not faltering quickly, and the dying process could drag out for weeks.

This sparked conversations about what we'd want to have happen if we're ever in Nana's condition. first and foremost, we have legal documentation that let's our wishes be known. Second, we talk about the hard topics; life support, Alzheimer's, dementia, etc.

Because death is so taboo to so many people, their wishes are never known. And that, my friends, leaves a lot of pressure on the family.

I encourage you to take the time to discuss your wishes with the people you love. Even better, drop $100 on a lawyer writing up your wishes. We're all going to succumb to the ggreat equalizer, sooner or later. My goal is to stay out of that grey area between life and death. Whatever your wishes, communicate them now, while you're in the white zone.