Love Immortal Read Online Free PDF Page A

warmth of the
blush in her face as she walked briskly away.
    At lunch - even though it was just after one
in the morning, most of the night duty nurses still considered this
lunch - Jewell sat at a table in the corner of the cafeteria with
Ashley. Jewell had met Ashley a couple of days after she started
working at University. Ashley worked in obstetrics. When they met,
they took an instant liking to each other and had been best friends
ever since.
    Jewell enjoyed having such a close friend.
Throughout her childhood she had watched the other children play,
or whisper together at the lunch tables, and longed for that kind
of relationship, to be “one of the girls.” She had that with
Ashley. They ate lunch together whenever they were working the same
shift, and on their days off they would always find something to do
together. Yesterday, they had gone for pedicures when Jewell told
Ashley she needed to do something to help her relax.
    “How do you do it?” Ashley asked abruptly as
she set her lunch tray on the table.
    “Do what?”
    “How do you deal with the death, the
suffering, day after day? Isn’t it depressing? Or do you just sort
of get used to it?”
    Jewell finished chewing the food she had just
placed in her mouth. She thought seriously about Ashley’s question,
trying to think of how best to explain it. “No, you don’t get used
to it. It’s more of an understanding, an acceptance. After all,
what’s life without death? If everyone lived forever, they would
never feel the need to accomplish anything, there would be no
pressure, no ending. It’s kind of like buying presents for
Christmas. In June, you don’t really think about it because there’s
so much time, but on December 15th, all of a sudden, all of your
shopping gets done. Does that make sense?”
    “Well, I guess I see what you are saying, but
I much prefer to bring life into the world than see it leave.” She
frowned as she thought about what her friend had to deal with day
after day, and tried to imagine what it would be like. She tried to
imagine herself in the same circumstances. She knew that people had
to die, it was a part of life, but she was happier not to be
reminded of it every day. “But what if we could have life without
death, or what if you had the opportunity to live forever? Would
you take it?”
    Jewell slowly shook her head. “I don’t think
I would want it. Imagine living every day knowing that you would
have to watch everyone you love die. Could you imagine the pain in
that? Seeing it happen, over and over again, with no end?”
    “But couldn’t you love them, knowing that
they would have you for the rest of their life? Wouldn’t that bring
you some level of happiness?”
    “I guess, but how would you feel if you loved
someone who was going to live forever, but you knew you wouldn’t.
Would you want them to have to suffer that for you? Wouldn’t that
be selfish?”
    “Well then, what if everyone could live
forever? Then you would never have to watch anyone die.”
    “That wouldn’t work either. Whether you
believe in God, or the big bang, or Darwin, or whatever, there has
to be balance in everything; black and white, night and day, good
and bad. If no one died, there would need to be something else to
balance that. Perhaps, no one would ever be born. You would
understand that Ash. Think about the joy that someone feels in
holding a baby, even if it’s not their own. Think about how you
feel when you carry a baby in to its mother. What if that was the
balance, giving up that joy?”
    “Well, what if like…maybe everyone lived
until they were 200 or something?”
    “So what then, you know you are going to die
on your 200th birthday? How do you act at the end? Are you
depressed? Do you give up? Do you try harder, hoping to accomplish
just one more thing? How would you live your last days Ash?”
    “Jeez Jewell, you are so depressing
sometimes! I think working down there is getting to you. I
personally think it