I realize it’s not exactly a cheery topic.  And it’s one I’ve avoided.  But now that I’m maturing, the time is now.

I’m feeling healthy, and hopefully my end in this world is far down the road.  But who knows?

My mind has often returned to a conversation I had with a friend.  Her dad died without a will … and what a mess that was.  The government was involved.  Her father’s wishes were unknown.  No thanks.

Before I left Canada, I updated my will and my Power of Attorney to have my friend Lydia in Maarkedal, Belgium become my representative when I die or am no longer cognitively intact.

We sat last week going over documents about her making decisions if I have dementia or can no longer express my will.  They were in Dutch, and Google Lens does a pretty good job of translating, but Lydia filled in the gaps of my understanding.

Yesterday I met with my doctor.  He told me of the current legal confusion in Belgium about euthanasia.  He also provided me with a new document that gets really specific about what I want and don’t want.  You see a part of it in the photo.

I gulp when I look at the picture.  The reality behind the words hits home:

Ik wil niet worden gereanimeerd

I don’t want to be resuscitated

Ik wil niet aan beademingsapparatuur worden gekoppeld

I don’t want to be hooked up to a ventilator

Ik wil geen:

I don’t want:

Chirurgische ingreep, chemotherapie, bestraling, transfusie

Surgical procedure, chemotherapy, radiation, transfusion

Ik wil beëindiging van mijn leven (euthanasie) als ik onomkeerbaar buiten bewustzijn ben.  [not in the photo]

I want to end my life (euthanasia) if I am irreversibly unconscious.

***

The end is not near

(Smile)