By the time you read this, I would be dead.

This morning as I read through news on google news my mind is in overdrive. The heading of this article is the title of a piece of news I read (Click here to read it yourself ). The article "spoke" about a Dr. Turner who at 58 chose to travel to Zurich from UK to "die with dignity". She had a neurological disease and she had seen her husband die of a similar disease. Dr. Turner could speak and move about, she was not in pain, but the prospect of a future where she was going to steadily decline... that was scary.

In the article, she says "I know that people say that I look well, but I am not." It is the thought of being increasingly dependant on others that upset her.."I am just so tired of being dependent on people..."

It brings to my mind the cycle of life. For the first decade of our life we are so dependant on other people, but no one regrets that. If in the first years of our life, we are dependant on our parents, later on in life we complete the circle and we are dependant on the next generation. I understand that in many countries there simply aren't enough people in the next generation to take care of older people... but that's another matter.

The article goes on to say..."Dr Turner was at the relatively early stages of the disease and was still able to walk unaided, eat and communicate." Dr. Turner died at Zurich from taking barbiturates. She believed her life is over.

The next piece of news that I read was about how Mario Lemieux, an Ice Hockey champ was quitting because he was too old to play at 40. I wonder what he sees when he looks into his future. Dr. Turner brings the question of the "Purpose of Life" chillingly to our minds. In the movie, " Whose Life is it Anyway ", a broadway adaptation, a sculptor decides life is not worth living because he cannot use his hands any more.

When do I decide my life is over? Do I have to make that call? I am not in a position to make any profound observations about and indvividual's right to die, but it does raise an important question that most of the time we would rather not think about.