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This video was created over a one-year
period. At first, it was just random use of a
video camera, plus a few pictures taken
during a visit in September of 2006. Of
course, this was before we knew that Mom had
a collapsed lung. She went in for tests, and
it was discovered that she had Stage IV Lung
Cancer. As we learned of the cancer diagnosis
in October of 2006, we tried to get Mom down
to California (from Niagara Falls, Ontario,
Canada). It was a race against logistics and
paperwork (i.e. obtaining documentation in
order to cross a border and travel), which we
unfortunately lost. Mom suffered a stroke,
ironically on the same day as she received
her birth certificate, which would have
allowed her to travel to Southern California.
The stroke left her left side completely
paralyzed, and she was stuck in the hospital,
no longer the independent woman she once was.
We were summoned to fly up immediately, as we
were told by her doctors that her death would
not be far behind. Mom proved them all wrong,
and lived for four more months. Of course,
the quality of life was minimal at best.
There was no treatment, since the cancer was
discovered so late, and due to the stroke. We
have since learned that often times, a biopsy
can knock loose cancerous material within a
tumor, which can cause a stroke. It was
extremely difficult to watch her suffering in
a hospital bed, and wondering why her last
months had to be made that much worse due to
the stroke. So, Mom never did get to come see
where we live in California. We continued to
videotape the entire ordeal, so that family
(who couldn't be with us at that time) could
see everything. We ended up with
approximately 90 minutes of raw footage,
which has been edited down to the 10 minutes
allowed here. First, we have done this to
honor Mom's last wishes: tell people not to
smoke. Second, we have completed this very
emotional project to honor her memory, and to
help us as we continue through the grieving
process. Finally, we are aware that much of
the anti-smoking media is not so real to
life--it doesn't show the suffering, what the
families go through, and the pain that
cigarettes actually cause. This documentary
is "non-Hollywood". We have omitted certain
things that one might find offensive,
including her IV, vomiting, bodily functions,
and her actual death itself, which was
obviously painful. Instead, we have brought
many different segments together, which still
conveys our overall message: DON'T SMOKE!
In a letter dated September 24, 2006, from
Mom:
"Try not to worry about my health. I go for a
CAT-SCAN on October 4th. I should have the
results about a week later. The appointments
are taking a long time, so I must not be in
such dire shape, or they would rush them. I'm
glad you never really had the desire to
smoke. What do your lungs look like after all
of those years of second-hand smoke? I can't
wait to see you and Patti more often. Gotta
go for now. Love Forever, Mom"
To conclude, one can compare smoking
cigarettes to a slow-motion car accident. At
any time, you can get out of the car before
it crashes. It is your choice. Furthermore,
you may be driving your own car, but please
remember that you take passengers along for
the ride.
Tags : Cigarettes Lung Cancer Stroke Government Sponsored Drug Death illness hospital educational last wish family parent son |
