Understanding Loneliness

I was fascinated by ‘Loneliness, 2020’s Other Health Crisis’ (November). I am 81 years old and was married for 52 years. After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, my wife had to be moved to an aged care facility. Her separation from family was aggravated by the isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sadly, she passed away a month ago. My agony during this unfortunate period is very much similar to the inset story related by Larry Signy.

At last, I could breathe a sigh of relief about this situation, by trying to understand the philosophy of life and death which has been explained in very simple terms as follows: “We are born without bringing anything and we die without taking anything. The sad thing is that, in the interval between life and death, we fight for what we did not bring and what we will not take”. DAYARATNA WEERASEKARA