Messages for Hanna

Dearest brave Hannah, I only stumbled on your page for the first time this morning. You are a stranger to me and yet I feel the depth of the journey you are embarking upon. Most can’t fathom what it takes to choose to leave your earthly body but know this- you are taking control over the uncontrollable monster of a disease called ALS. My dad made the same heart wrenching decision to retake control by stopping eating and drinking via feeding tube. It takes guts, and bravery, and faith, and hope- you (and my dad) are the strongest of the strong. I wish you a comfortable and peaceful journey to the great beyond. Your angels are around you, protecting you, and you soon will be ushered back to a body that is your own- to dance, to sing, to live. In the words of Jack London, “I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The proper function of a man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.” I am thinking of you and wishing you comfort, immeasurable love, and freedom… Godspeed. Love from a stranger in Minnesota, Anna