[Kistle]

Powerful post, Dottore.

I tend to agree with the Dalai Lama, and with your ambitions of how you want to perceive death.

That said, I wonder if the choice to "accept it" or to "find it funny" is nothing more than a defense mechanism to avoid dealing with something that we are, as another poster stated, "hardwired to fear".

For my part, I DEFINITELY fear the thought of being injured or diseased to a point where I am technically "alive", but unable to really participate in life. The thought of a chronic disease is MUCH more daunting to me then just "losing it all" quickly.

This post also makes me think about all the planning and positioning that we do. Most of us on this board who are successful, work extremely hard and make a lot of sacrifices, with laser focus on providing for "the future". I am 46, and I spend a lot of energy making sure that my family has what it needs now, and when I retire. We certainly enjoy everyday, and spend all of our free time together as a family at home playing together, on vacation, traveling, etc... But, it makes me wonder about the "balance" between today and tomorrow.

And congrats to you for having a brave, strong father, and for being there for him at the end. My dad died of ALS when I was 18. He went from being able to beat me in arm-wrestling to dead in 11 months. He smiled the whole way, and never complained about his illness, nor expressed any regrets in his life. That strength played a major part in making me who I am as an adult, and I carry it with me every day.

Very compelling post, on many levels. Thanks,

JA