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Be Not Afraid ReverenceExtreme as Doug and Ruby’s story may seem, itillustrates an attitude that is rampant in today’s world.Call it jadedness, indifference, or callousness – it allstems from the same lack of respect for life (and theloss of life), and it shows itself in numerous ways. Itis there in hospital settings where “professionalism”demands that patients be referred to by room numbersrather than names. It is there at funeral homes, whichoften promote lavish spending by implying that tosave money is to scrimp and thus dishonor the dead.(Who wants to be known as the family who boughttheir mother a budget casket?) It is also there wherechildren quarrel – even if behind the scenes – overwills and inheritances, and deny a dying parent thepossibility of a truly peaceful end.Irreverence is also there when, because of oursuperficiality, we are unable to share someone else’spain or grief, and thus try to gloss it over with forcedcheerfulness. Linda, the mother of the young man Imentioned in a previous chapter, says such attemptstend to only worsen an already difficult situation:Not long after it had become clear that medicallyspeaking, there was nothing more to be done for Matt, awell-meaning neighbor cheerfully told my husband thatshe knew our son was going to pull through: “Matt’s not44