Sudden or Slow

There was a man at one of my regular meetings in Vacation City - same sobriety class as me: '87 - who died suddenly of a massive heart attack recently.  He had suffered from a variety of health issues in the past but there was nothing in his current chart to suggest that such a drastic event was imminent.

Then there's dad . . .   

We all know what's coming down the road for him.  The timing is unclear but the result is not. The question, of course, is: which do you prefer?  The suddenness sucks - loved ones have no opportunity to prepare for the loss - but the lack of suffering would seem to be a big plus.  I can see the advantages of both conclusions but I bet if you told someone: "OK.  You're going to be trucking along, feeling fine, attending meetings, and Boom! just like that, you meet your maker" that the consensus would be that that's not a bad way to go.  No one wants to linger and suffer and lose control.

Although my friend was here one moment, gone the next, I could see that he was loved and appreciated, content, relatively happy, surrounded by people who cared about him and about whom he cared, enjoying life right up to the end.  

Not a bad way to go.