Quote for the Day

If you want trust, trust others. If you want respect, respect others. If you want help, help others. If you want love and peace in your life, give them away. If you want great friends, be one. That’s how it works. 

~ Dan Zadra

What do Euthanasia and C Sections Have in Common?

     Cesarean Section births are an incredible advancement in medicine, saving the lives of many women and their children.  Our ability to offer these procedures safely have contributed a great deal to the decrease in mortality rates and complications in childbirth.

     However, most everyone agrees that there are far too many c-sections being performed in our country today.  The World Health Organization suggests that the "optimal" rate is 15% of all births, while natural birth advocates suggest that in healthy women, the rate should be 4-5%. In 2007, the US c-section rate reached a record high of 32% - almost a third of all births occur through c-section.

     Theories abound on why this is happening, but many of them sound a lot like the reasons why our euthanasia rate for animals is close to 100%:

Thought for the Day: Problem Solving

     It seems to me there are only two worthwhile strategies for solving problems:

                  (1) work hard; or

                  (2) be patient and wait it out.

    They're not mutually exclusive and I've used both with great success.  Most other strategies seem to back fire - worrying, ranting, ignoring, blaming someone, expecting someone else to figure it out and do it, trying to buy your way out.

     What do you think?  What works best for you?

Quote for the Day

Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.

~  A.A. Milne

When the Ideal and Realty Diverge

     In an ideal world, we would all have the time, energy, resources, funds and stamina to care for our dying - whether they are human or animal - in the comfort of their own home, with the best medications, state of the art equipment, attentive and supportive caretakers, and an abundance of time, energy and love.  We would spend quality time with the dying, wrapping up loose ends and coming to peace with his or her passing.  We would put everything else on hold to be in the moment with our loved one, fully appreciating the significance and preciousness of our final time together.

     And then there is reality: the job that demands your time, the children who also need your attention, the checkbook already strained, and confusion abounding.  The demands on your time, your resources, and your funds are many.  Caring for the dying under these circumstances seems at best difficult and at worst impossible.

     While it is tempting to run rather than act, hide rather than make tough decisions or ignore rather than cope with problems, doing so invariably proves to be a mistake, leaving you feeling guilt ridden, exhausted, confused, and full of regret.

     So what can you do?

Quote for the Day

Flowers grow out of dark moments.

~ Corita Kent