And the one in the current (February 27th) issue could be about me in the not too distant future. "Ladies' Lunch" written by Lore Segal, is about a woman living in an apartment in New York with a view of the Empire State building. She's lived there forever and she loves it. She has a group of close friends who've been together for decades. They are retired lawyers, writers and other strong smart women.
So what's the problem? They're old.
Lotte, the apartment dweller, has no interest in the caregivers or the heart healthy diet that her children keep re-providing as fast as she rejects them.
Her friend, Bridget, presents the agenda at one of their get-togethers: "How to Prevent the Inevitable.' I mean any of the scenarios we would rather die than live in."
Later in the story Lotte, after firing yet another caregiver and suffering a fall, is carted off by family members to an assisted living facility in the Hudson Valley. She has no view. Her smart friends plot to rescue her but none of them drives anymore. The plan to have an eighteen year old grandson provide the get away car fails when he flunks his test for a license.
In the end they cease to hear from Lotte but not before she explains to them that they needn't worry about her because she is already dead.
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I'm blessed to be a part of a community of folks who have continual conversations about issues like What's Important in the End. It's different for all of us.
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