Divine Digesting of the Blogs, V. 2

A couple things from the All Mighty Reader...
Chapter I. Religious folks and saving lives;
Chapter II. A sports career in retrospect;
Chapter III. Running in (pretty much) my parents' backyard!

I. Religious folks and saving lives
Toni at EverythingHealth noted an interesting study in the New York Times a couple weeks ago. Terminally ill cancer patients who were very religious (specifically Christians in the U.S.) were more likely to request intensive life-saving procedures in the last week of life than other people. These other people included Christians who were not quite so religious and people who chose other coping mechanisms altogether. You can find the abstract here.

The lead author, Dr. Holly G. Prigerson offered her explanation of this curious finding in the Times article: “To religious people, life is sacred and sanctified and there’s a sense they feel it’s their duty and obligation to stay alive as long as possible.”

While that may be the case, the procedures used to squeeze out every last drop of life are the most costly. The Times estimates that Medicare spends about 1/3 of it's budget on people in their last year of life, and most of it at the very end. I suppose that statistic isn't really as outrageous as it sounds though--obviously most people want to do whatever they can to hold onto someone a bit longer, regardless of cost.

Invasive procedures performed at the end of life can also be emotionally taxing. The article suggested that prolonging life for these terminally ill cancer patients created more physical pain for the patient and emotional pain for loved ones.

So, is this another reason to chastise evangelical Christians, or is their fight a good one?

II. A sports career in retrospect
Completely changing gears-- Megan at ...Because I Played Sports posted about her experience at the 2009 WNBA Draft, along with a little background as to why this event was so special. I really appreciated reading the back story to the development of her blog and everything that has followed. It's always great to hear Plan B success stories! (And no, that was not a birth control reference.)

My back story is probably not as interesting or as poignant (since I'm not writing this from my ESPN dressing room or whatever), but in the last two years since I haven't been playing softball, spring season is bittersweet. I too started playing softball when I was a little girl, and I loved it right from the beginning. I don't hesitate to say I still love it to this day, but my career was so full of highs and lows and insecurities and frustrations that it's extremely difficult to look back on it with any detail and not cringe in agony. Why didn't I try out for that team? Why wasn't I more confident? HOW DID I MISS THAT BALL?!

As a whole, I loved and continue to love it. I have no doubts that playing the game for so many years has had a direct effect on the person I am today. But at times I have to wonder--Why put myself through it? There wasn't a season I didn't cry or complain or threaten to quit, up until the very end (when I probably should have thrown in the towel). There were times I could have strangled my coach or my teammates or my "captains."

But despite all the headaches and knee aches and stomachaches... maybe it's all about the struggle. Without it, what's the point? It makes life thoroughly interesting and without it, I would (well, we ALL would) just be a puddle of goo in a LaZ Boy. Which is not to say that sometimes that doesn't sound awesome...

III. Running in (pretty much) my parents' backyard!
Quickly--Watch this video that was posted at Women Like Sports.

Watch until Marni Renison starts talking to you. Now hit Pause. This is Tualatin Hills Park and Rec complex and it's like a 3 minutes walk from where I grew up. That big white building over Marni's right shoulder? That's where I played basketball most of my life. And the path right behind her? It goes down the hill and off to the left, past the soccer fields and TO MY HOUSE. Oh Oregon, how I miss thee.

What a nice, end of the work day surprise!