Should I talk about the fact that hes dying with him?
Our tremendous discomfort with death can make it difficult or impossible to talk with a dying person about whats happening. Many times, family and friends talk about everything except the fact that someone is dying. I often go into a hospital room, alone with the patient and ask: “Whats happening?” Many of them calmly reply: “Im dying.” Others are sarcastic or angry or frightened, upset that I seem to have missed the obvious. But in every case, the topic of death is opened. When I say, “Your family and friends think that you cant talk about dying,” they usually replay, “No, they cant talk about it.” And then we have discussions about disease and dying that later amaze their families. They wonder how their loved ones can talk about death with a total stranger, but not with them.You never know what someone needs when going into a conversation. The person you are talking to may not know either for dying is always a new experience. The emotions of the person who is dying may change from da
