THE LONG GOODBYE

On Oct. 7, 1988, my husband suffered a major stroke that left him paralyzed from the neck down. In three years, his condition never improved, as Kaye reports her father’s has.

Although my husband was getting adequate nutrition through a tube, his body could not utilize it properly and so he wasted away. I am absolutely certain, however, that he knew the full horror of his situation.

Surely there must be an answer to this problem. A living will is not the answer nor is durable power of attorney for health care. Those must be exercised before living death makes its visit.

Somehow, the law must catch up with science, or science must develop a code that recognizes the waste of human life and resources that its advances bring.

Somebody, do something!

JOANNA V. MCKENZIE

Chatsworth