10.20.2005

The day I die ...

There was an article in our newspaper yesterday of a couple who had been together for nearly 70 years …

Earlier this month, the 90-year-old man learned from their son that his 86-year-old wife was dying. The next morning, the story goes, the man, who had been healthy, “had sunk within himself.” His decline continued through the days until 7:30 p.m. Oct. 12, when, after hours of reaching for an invisible hand, he died.

… and his wife, who didn’t know of her husband’s sudden deterioration, died about six hours and 40 minutes later.

“He made the decision: 'If she’s going, I’m going,’” their son-in-law said.

I’ve covered enough fatal car crashes in my short career and I’ve said it over and over: one of my biggest fears is having a loved one or myself dying in a car crash …

… but if I could pick the way I go, it would be the one depicted in this story: Live a long, happy, productive life and then die within hours of the Kates -- that's assuming we both live to be like 90 years old, and our parents and other loved ones have passed before us.

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