When I am on the verge of departing (a poetic advance directive, for my loved ones)
Carlos Eduardo Paiva · 2025
Read When I am on the verge of departing (a poetic advance directive, for my loved ones) by Carlos Eduardo Paiva (2025) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/pmc-13166696.txt.
Description
Carlos Eduardo Paiva, writing alone in 2025, sets out his end-of-life wishes as a poem for his loved ones. The piece is framed as a poetic advance directive. Sea, tree, and light images carry the requests. He asks not to be held to life when only a shadow of himself remains.
Verses ask family not to force care that cannot restore him. He wants to keep his own eyes, voice, and steps while life lasts. Presence, warmth, hands, and love are what he asks for at the end. The poem turns a legal form into a personal gift. It gives families plain, tender words for choices that are often left unsaid until too late.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Carlos Eduardo Paiva |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2025 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 1 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |