Shahina Lakhani, RN, MSN has been a nurse for over 25 years. She's worked as an educator, Nurse Practitioner and a Hospice Nurse. Her passion is to help others experience well-being and live powerfully until their last breath. Below is a poem inspired by a true story about the suffering endured due to lack of an advance directive.

Randee Laikind

Randee is a volunteer with Dignity 2012, and recently helped to collect signatures for the Massachusetts Death with Dignity effort. She's one of the founders of Hampshire County Hospice, served on their first Board of Directors, and was their first Volunteer Coordinator. She's also a member of the Funeral Consumers Alliance of Western Massachusetts, served as a Trustee, and was President of Western Massachusetts Hemlock Society for many years. She's provided support and education around death and dying issues to her community for over 30 years. She lives and works in western Massachusetts.

I recently had the honor to collect signatures here in Massachusetts for the initiative petition on Death With Dignity. I say it was an honor because this petition, if it makes it to the ballot box in November 2012, will afford those who choose to end their lives with dignity and respect the opportunity to do so.

Bill Nerin was a Catholic Priest for 24 years and a Family Therapist and is currently an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Oklahoma in the Human Relations Department. As a Washington resident, he volunteered to help put the state's Death with Dignity Act on the ballot which the voters approved in 2008.

In his book published last year, A Couple Faces Death: My Life After Anne, Bill shares how, together, they faced Anne's certain death due to melanoma, and his life since her death. Below, you'll find sections from the chapter "What To Do About Death."

Journal April 10, 2006—about six months after Anne's death.
We all thank God when a child is born, or when we recover from an illness based on the assumption that God has something to do with birth and recovery. But we don't seem to thank God for death even though it is assumed that God has something to do with that too.

Meg, 8 months after diagnosis and surgery

Meg Holmes was diagnosed with brain cancer on Dec. 12, 2009. Andrew Taylor, Meg's husband, began publishing a blog to keep friends up to date on Meg's illness and treatment. On October 6, Andrew posted the following piece about Meg's decision to take medication prescribed to her under Washington's Death with Dignity Act. You can read the entire journey on Meg's blog.

My wife Meg died on Saturday morning in the loving company of her brother, sister, son, daughter and husband.

Rick and Nora

Nora Miller's husband was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 1999, and died peacefully after exercising his right to Death with Dignity under Oregon's law. Her mother and sister were not so fortunate.

These contrasting experiences have motivated Nora to do what she can to promote the enactment of Death with Dignity laws in all states, to encourage medical personnel to learn about and embrace the benefits of the law for their patients, and to challenge misrepresentations of the facts about Death with Dignity wherever possible.

Oh laddie, are you going just now?
Can't you stay a while longer?
Sit and we will share the last golden drop
of the wee dram that is you and me.
- Caoineadh cu Chulainn

The experience of a dying patient has a hundred different angles. Which angle tells the story?