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Throughout his career, David J. Casarett, M.D. has
seen death and he’s seen what he thinks are interesting ways
of dealing with it. In his new book Last Acts,
he writes about how the end of life can be rich with
opportunity.
You can only imagine the feelings your friend had when his
doctor gave him the bad news. Surely, he was scared but was
it with regret or resolve?
Throughout years of working with patients at the end of
their lives, Casarett has seen many reactions to imminent
death, and he’s become curious about them.
“…I find that my attention is caught and held simply by the
efforts of those… who wanted to make something of the time
that they have left,” he says.
There are, of course, as many varied and personal actions as
there are patients. In this book, he tells the stories of
dozens of people who chose to face their deaths in ways that
Casarett is able to basically categorize.
Some, like Jacob, ask for every possible minute of breath,
even if it means that those minutes will be spent isolated
from family. Others, like Danny and a grandmother who went
unnamed, pull their families tighter to them, hoping to
leave happy memories for loved ones and wishing for the best
reminisces.
There are those, like Tom, who don’t want to dwell upon
death, choosing instead to distract themselves or to
steadfastly hang on to their identities by continuing to
work. Some, like Christine, wish to convey wisdom and peace.
And – not surprisingly – there are people who rail against
dying, bitter and unapologetic, hoping for revenge, angry
and fearful with denial.
I had mixed feelings about Last Acts.
Author David J. Casarett’s book will surely resonate with
everyone who’s old enough to have lost a loved one to a
lingering illness. Without a doubt, the stories he presents
are well-chosen; some are very beautiful and spirit-warming,
while others make you sad for opportunities lost. No doubt,
they’ll start conversations.
But in between each story, Casarett teases out a “why?” (Why
did this patient do this, or that patient choose
differently?), much of which I found confounding “Why” is
largely conjecture here and the reasoning will never be
learned, so I had a hard time appreciating hypotheses about
decisions that may have been made just because.
I think this book will probably be best appreciated by
medical professionals or clergymen and women, and possibly
by the not-so-recently-bereaved. But for casually curious
readers, Last Acts is one to pass on. |
