Advanced Directive: A Poem

no pain
please, if it can be avoided
any anodyne will do
if agony has set in
when the end is in sight

no chest compressions
for when my time comes,
I want my ribcage intact
so my last breath is my own
no need to intercept fate

and since you asked,
I will pass on artificial feeding,
fancy ventilation
and anyone entering
to pray for my sins

just my loved ones nearby and
my cat lying at my legs,
some flowers (peonies, perhaps)
music turned down low
but most importantly,

remember
to place me by a window
one that looks out
onto sky, the tops of trees
birds in flight

then draw the curtains
so that light pours in gently
embalming me
in its numinous embrace
as I begin to take my leave