Yesterday evening, we had a memorial service for a little guy who only lived for a short nine months. It wasn't a sudden happening necessarily, since death had always been seemingly imminent since birth. He had been born prematurely, sometime during the second trimester I believe. He should have (and would have) died immediately (his lungs had not even developed yet), but the medical powers that be are persuasive...always interested in the opportunity to intervene for God. Though it's a harsh thing to say about the culture of medicine, I can't say that Kelsie and I wouldn't be tempted to "fight for life" as this family did...all to say...this post is not about judgement.
He never left the hospital during his tenure. Never got to meet the wind. When seeing photographs, it was very difficult to not think of Dr. Frankenstein. Fucking tubes everywhere - breathing for him, feeding him, digesting for him, going to the bathroom for him. Hooked up to machines. Nine major surgeries. In rebellion it seemed, as soon as his limbs developed and he learned to grab, he would accidentally yank tubes out of various vulnerable areas. However, everyone still continued to believe that he was going to make it - despite small attempts to ween him off of machines in which his lungs would collapse or feeding wouldn't go as planned. Ultimately, all was synthetic.
Alas, as he was finally unplugged, he survived only a few moments in his mother's arms. It seemed that death and grief had simply been postponed by medical technology, as usual. But again, making the impossible decision to let go/accept death or to fight for life/living is not to be judged by any of us - as we will most likely find ourselves in the same boat at some point in our lives. How do we not fight for life/living? On the other hand, how do we challenge a billion dollar industry that exploits this vulnerability - that capitalizes on our fear of pain and death?
One other question that we must consider as a technology dependent global society - how long would we survive without our machines? How long can we afford to keep them plugged in?
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Are you prepared to "Take Shelter"?
"Sleep well in your beds. 'Cause if this thing comes true, there ain't gonna be any more."
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