[Paul Vusik]

I wasn’t sure in which thread to post this, so I think that this one very much fits the subject matter.

I was doing some writing this week, in relation to the aspects of “Life”. It was a good experience in the sense of what people mean as being alive or enjoying life. One of the aspects that’s I remembered and made me think of making this post is from my experience last year.
My father passed away last February. He was only 64 years old. He started to experience some pain and fever the summer before, and went to the hospital to get it checked up, and was told based on his “symptoms “ he has covid, so he should go home and just stay isolated for 14 days. No further check ups, nothing!
After a month passed, the “symptoms “ didn’t go away, and the doctors didn’t want to give him appointment for further evaluations, until late November.
As all the tests were taken, and the results came in, he was told “ you have stage 4 cancer, there is nothing we can do for you, go home and you have couple of months to live”
I’m sharing this, because I remember it like it was yesterday, when I was in the hospital when he was still “alive”, or considered to be “alive”, even though he was just living because he was hooked up to the ventilator. The nurse said to me the following, “we can keep him alive as long as we want, we control his oxygen intake, we feed him through the IV, we give him the necessary drugs to subdue him, he can’t do nothing on his own!”
I remember thinking, is this still considered a person to be alive? If he can’t absolutely do nothing on his own? Everything is controlled by some man that does and takes away as they see fit? It’s not really life, it’s a form of existence!
As I take that experience and think of my days in recovery, I think of the same thing. Everyone is hooked up to the ventilator, subdued, not asking questions, can’t really function on their own, unless some man puts in some droplets of nutrients in ones IV and adjust the oxygen level to make sure you don’t completely sink into a coma. You are always dependent on some “wise man”, “master operator”, who knows better that you, and for that matter better than everyone else around you on what you need. That can go on forever, as long as one is willfully, ignorantly, subjects himself to that kind of LIFE.
It’s only when God rip off all the connections, all the hookups and operating equipment of you, cuts all the cords, by His mercy and grace, you get out of that bed, and stand on your own two feet! You take a deep breath of air into your lungs, and start seeing the light outside of that hospital room, you realize that there is real LIFE, and He is the Master and the builder of it! He nurtures you, He takes care of you, and going back into that hospital room is not even a possibility under the most dire of circumstances!
That what’s called “LIVE and LIVING” really is. Rather than total and utter control of persons existence and well-being!