Let the dying speak ...

How often do we we read or watch a deathbed scene where the dying person is struggling to articulate some confession or apology, and where the person who sits with them tries to brush their words aside, or tell them there is no need to unburden themselves, that all that is in the past, and that they must not distress themselves?

My feeling is that those who are dying should be allowed to say what is troubling their minds and lying heavy on their hearts; and however painful it may be for the listener to hear, those last words should be accepted and acknowledged. At no other time in our lives are we likely to be so clear about what we need to say, so that we may die peacefully and without regrets.

I wrote something here about how I wished my children to care for me in the last days of my life, and I am going to add to that some words about listening to what I have to say.