Why Not Go Gentle?

 

Dylan Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer.  Born in Uplands, United Kingdom in 1914, he's currently experiencing new fame by being referenced in Taylor Swift's current tour, "The Tortured Poets Department."  

His most famous poem was: 

Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night.  

Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light. 

I think it's sad that many old, sick people feel this way and it's even sadder that young Thomas felt this way.   Old age can be joyful if we let it.  No raging needed. 

Though wise men at their end know dark is right, Because their words have forked no lightening they Do no go gentle into that good night. 

Thomas uses light as a symbol for life, but not death.  Even though he knows the unstoppable nature of death, he still suggests that we fight to the end.  

My husband, Ken, kind of did this.  Even though he was a strong believer in the afterlife, he raged and suffered more than necessary.  In his last years, when he had some dementia, he often used the phrase from his high school and college football career, "Put me in the game, Coach," whenever his doctors wanted to try one more thing. 

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright,  Their frail deeds might have drank in a green bay,  Rage, rage against the dying of the light. 

I'm 85 and, even though I have health issues, I don't rage - don't care to rage.  My life is full.  Why would I make myself and everyone around me miserable by raging?  It makes no sense. I want to be gentle. 

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight, And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,  Do not go gentle into that good night. 

Thomas references good men, wild men, and grave men.  I think he's talking about people in various stages of life.  Thomas was grieving the death of his father.  But Thomas would live only another two years and die at age 39, apparently from alcoholism.  He did not feel good about the life he'd led. 

I've led a hard life but, now that I am old, the fruits of that life are flowing all around me.  No need to rage.  

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight  Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,  Rage, rage against the dying of the light. 

I have had the honor of being with several people who were in the final stages of life.  I don't remember one of them raging.  In fact, it seems to me that most of them were content.  And that includes my husband, Ken at the end.  As you know, I follow Hospice Nurse Julie (who has a book coming out in June.)  She has chronicled many, many deaths.  The vast majority have been beautiful. 

And you, my father, there on the sad height,  Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.  Do not go gentle into that good night.  Rage, rage against the dying of the light. 

Thomas suggests we rage because we live empty lives.  If that be true, many of us still have time to turn that around if we really want to.  And this is what I believe:  The real "light," according to Hospice Nurse Julie and the vast majority of other people I know, is on the other side.

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On the Beach

A few days ago I shared the first of my summer disaster movies, Contagion 2011.  That's eight years before COVID hit us.  So, in addition to being entertaining, the film, for me, took on new revalance. 

Next up is On the Beach.  Made in 1959,  it is one of my all time favorites.  And it has taken on new

relevance due to the recent blockbuster Oppenheimer.

No, On the Beach is not about college kids in Fort Lauderdale.  It's about how atomic war wipes out humanity.  First, in the Northern Hemisphere.

And it's a terrific love story with a great cast, despite the fact that every single person in the world dies.

Trust me. 

Gregory Peck plays his  Atticus Finch part, only as a submarine captain in Australia, whose wife and children have died in the U.S.  We knew this because, and I remind you, when the movie opens every person in the Northern Hemisphere is dead. Peck struggles with his emotions and falls in love, but continues to follow his moral code to the end.

Ava Gardner plays an Australian who's a bit of a floozy (as she did in many rolls) but is truly in love with Peck. 

Anthony Perkins does his Anthony Perkins thing.  He's very sad, especially when he has to convince his wife, along with their baby, to take her suicide  pills.  

Fred Astaire is in a surprise roll.  In real life he was 60 years old when he made the film. He looks older.  No dancing.  He plays a cynical scientist who knows the score about what's happened in the Northern Hemisphere and what will soon happen in the Southern Hemisphere.  I loved him in this part.

If you watch On the Beach, don't be put off by the song Waltzing Matilda.  Just go with it....because it's played in the background throughout the entire film.  Honestly, it's a feel good movie.

Trust me. 

I saw On the Beach on YouTube for free.

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Contagion 2011

   

Imagine yourself in a world wide pandemic.  No, wait....you've just been in one! 

 For this summer, I've decided to watch a few older disaster films.  I chose Contagion 2011 to watch yesterday. This film is loaded with stars like Gwyneth Paltrow, Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Lawerence Fishbourne, Marion Cotillard and Bryan Cranston.

One of the reviewers of Contagion 2011 wrote, If something like this did ever happen, I shutter to contemplate the societal ramifications.

My reaction to the movie was far different from the first time I saw it.  Who would have guessed that a mire 8 years later, 2019, we would experience COVID, a virus that began in China and eventually killed a million people in the United States alone. 

Contagion 2011 was a tale about an untreatable super virus rapidly spreading across the world.  

Another reviewer wrote after watching the film, I found myself wanting to bathe in a gallon of hand sanitizer.  In real life, I felt like I was drowning myself in a bucket of hand sanitizer.  Every day.

It's doubtful anyone took the movie seriously.  After all, Gwyneth Paltrow coughed in Hong Kong, headed home to Minneapolis, but with a five hour layover in Chicago to meet an old boyfriend.  And a few weeks later people were dropping like flies.  That's just silly, right?

Lawrence Fishbourne plays the Dr. Fauci role, only nine years before Dr Fauci played it in real life.

There are many heroes in this film and a few troublemakers.  Fewer than we had in real life.  And there were no deniers.  What was happening was too real to be denied.  

I saw this film on YouTube for free. 

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Are You Crazy? The Fall Will Probably Kill Ya

 

Remember the quote above from the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?  

The Kid was afraid to jump off a cliff because he couldn't swim.  But, even though he jumped and the fall didn't kill him, statistically, Butch was correct.

According to the CDC:

Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries among older adults.

About twelve years ago, I was diagnosed with Meniere's Disease. It's a miserable illness and all I wanted to do was lie on the couch.  But, I knew that wasn't the answer.  I tried several balancing classes recommended by my medical team, but they didn't work for me.  

Then Betsy, the parish nurse at my church, recommended a class led by a woman named Claudia.  It was different.  She had the same philosophy I did.  It sounds counterintuitive but, for most of us oldies, it's truly a "use it or lose it" situation.

Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries among older adults.

For most of us, sitting on the couch is not the answer. Claudia was all about staying strong and exercising, no matter how bad we felt.  She had great tips, like reminding us that it's more dangerous to walk downstairs than upstairs because we tend to fall forward.  

There was an old lady in a wheelchair the class.  Her daughter would wheel her in and return later to pick her up.  After a couple of sessions, Claudia had this woman standing for most of our activities. 

On the third day she was sitting in a regular folding chair when her daughter arrived.  The daughter was obviously upset to see her mom not in her wheelchair and was trying to pick her up.

From across the room, Claudia called to the daughter, "Leave her alone.  She can transfer to the wheelchair by herself."

And she did. 

Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries among older adults. 

Falls happen everywhere, including hospitals.  Especially hospitals!

The best remedy is not to stay in bed.  It's to, as best we can, move!  Of course we need to be careful, but we need to move.  Every day.  If you're afraid and don't feel well and your loved ones want you to sit or lie down 24-7, just remember this:

The Barcalounger will probably kill ya!

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