Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Would you wan't to know your expiration date?

Mine was 13 May '69.

Livin' on borrowed time, it's all good.

I know what you mean Jim. My perspective is different. Every little bit of time I was able to spend with my parents was treasured by them as they were by me.

My Mother fought cancer for 18 months and was in agony during the intervening months before her death. If I had been in her position I would never have wanted my children to see me totally incapacitated and see them suffer along with me.

Good lessons in all this. Make your peace or live with it until it's your time. I have a brother and sister who refused to believe Mom could die like that. They couldn't digest it and never said nor did what they should have. I was holding Mom when she died. Bro and sis looked at me with disbelief when she drew her last breath.

Now they pull their hair out thinking about it. I warned them but they wouldn't pay attention. I have no sympathy for them because I know Mom was aware they were acting like idiots when all this was going on.

Last post from me on this subject. Hard to try and explain it at all.

Not me. I heard a preacher say that when it comes your time to die just make sure that's all you have to do. I have done that and when the Lord gets ready for me, I'm ready. That's His business.

Well we are not suppose to know when our time comes, only God knows that and it will be at a time place and under what circumstances if his choosing. Its up to us thru free will to live a good life how ever long or short it maybe. I myself am pretty much alone in the world, hardly any family left, single never married ( a failing on my part) but I do get up every morning and take great joy in the little things that I notice, I watched an Owl this morning for almost an hour in the dawn hours. Then when and caught a couple of trout for breakfast. Later I will go fish some more. Its the little things guys that makes living a joy. I think God planned it that way. I admit I am not all that religious, nor do I go to services on Sunday. I just try to live a good life by being a decent man. Thats the hard part when all you see are the cheaters and the degenerates getting ahead and being celebrated!

i am changing and updating my position on this very subject nearly every day. and it's because of the changes i see occurring in the world.

my Grandfather was in his high 90's when he passed while i was serving in the military. he died of complications from a paralyzing stroke. he lived nearly totally paralzed for eight months, often in the hospital for pneumonia. he had no life left after the stroke.

my mom is 90 and just got to come home from 20 days in a rehab center after two weeks in the hospital for pnuemonia. i see where Oregon, Washington and now Vermont have passed laws allowing doctors to assist citizens in achieving "respectful" deaths. i know this is controversial.

after seeing my "fate" in a nursing home, please God, take me a year or two early, ok? that is, i don't want to spend a fortune on a quack doctor keeping me alive with high technology when we already know the outcome, but not when. factor in costs, and quality of life, then please treat me humanely like we expect our pets to be treated.

my dog Jack died last year at the Vet's. he had been down for two days and no chance of recovery. he was treated as humanely as i possibly could.

there, now i've said it.

well if one of you guys finds out your day, take the day before to travel to washington and set some things right *wink*

i can hear you. i'm not deaf yet.

my point is that we often treat our pets more humanely than we do our old folks. and i'm as serious as a heart attack. a once daily visit to the local nursing home has caused me to open my eyes. i realize there's religious issues involved. i can understand and accept that. i might start injecting some of my own religious issues into the debate.

Friend Steve,

I don't know Karen, but I imagine she has a very good idea how much you love her!

Blessings,
Marty

I distinctly remember an elderly friend of my FIL who has also gone since. I remember this man having been given a diagnosis of terminal cancer with just several months time left. i I remember his orderly selling of all of his fishing equipment and everything that he had that his wife would have no further interest in. He and his wife planned his funeral and he personally contacted and said goodbye to close friends. There is an upside there.

I also think there is a special grace and benefit in knowing your time is near as the shock of an instant, unexpected death, no goodbyes and loving exchanges, important finances unresolved are very difficult in the midst of grief. And, in a sense, the mourning can be shared together perhaps making the actual event somewhat easier when it comes.

My MIL who passed at 96, as mentally intact as ever, had everything done, signed, sealed, and settled including the soloist, songs, and organist for her funeral. It made it very easy when she died. 'Course once you hit the 80's one should know death is imminent no matter how good you might feel on any one day. Time to plan.

Conversely, Our community just lost a young man in his early twenties as the result of an auto accident. Instant gone. Very hard on everybody as you'd expect.

My wife and I are planning as much of the end of life stage stuff as we can to lessen the burden on the one left or our kids. Generally, though, God knew what He was doing when He put future events including the time of our demise out of bounds.

I never wanted to know the expiration date, but I was told. Fooled them and beat the odds.

I'd want to know so that I could maximize my Social Security, retirement and insurance.

FWIW - I was supposed to die in the early 70's and have been living on borrowed time since then. God keeps frustrating everyone's predictions.

I don't want to know and don't care what the expiration date is for me. Right now, at age 58, I am the fifth longest living male on my dad's side of the family. Most males in the family died in their forties and fifties and that goes back two or three generations and continues to this day. My dad made it to 68, his brother to 69 and they had a cousin last until his mid eighties. All lived much longer than expected given the family history.

Life has its ups and downs but I figure each day is a blessing with more good than bad. I'm lucky to be here and I'm happy for each day I have. I'd be OK if it all ended tomorrow since the balance scale of my life is weighted heavily toward the good side. The day there is more bad than good I'll be happy to go. Until then, there's some life left to live to the best of my abilities. Ward

My wife was giving me a testosterone and vitamin B shot this morning and told me the the expiration date printed on my butt was was past.

Oh boy...I know what's going down in the Scottf house tonight...hehehhee

I'd like a short time to prepare, but not years, or even months to worry. MY FIL died suddenly while in good health. He should have had many more good years. There are many things I'd have liked to share with him. He didn't get to see most of his grandkids. My daughter was his oldest and was in 6th grade at the time. That was 15 years ago and my wife is still not over it.

My dad was in declining health for several years. We nearly lost him a bit over a year ago. His last year he knew was on borrowed time and he made the best of it. He told me on his 89th birthday that he'd like to make it to 90 and would just as soon die the next day. We all had a year to say, and do everything we wanted. We put had him hospitalized on Feb. 1 of this year knowing he would never come home. He died on the 7th, one week short of 90.

In many ways dad reminds me of the above sign. He didn't die of any single thing. He lived a long full life and his mind simply outlived the rest of his body. He was sharp as a tack, but almost every body function, vision, hearing, heart, lungs, legs, were just used up.

With the garlic smell all over me not much chance of anything but sleeping.

Upside is one could get his ducks in a row. Downside is I'd hate doing the countdown.

My folks made to into their 80's and smoked like trains. I'd sure like to make the 90's and at least score a bighorn sheep tag before I go.

My wife is pretty much a tiger in life. Not much on this earth scares her. The one thing she has told be is she does not want to grow old alone. My desire for my end here on earth is to wake up one morning and find she has gone home while sleeping in my arms, kiss her good by, then close my eyes and follow her. I really don't care what morning that is.

Guess the chrome faucet didn't work? lol

Not well enough.