I agree - my dear friend just ..."So I too want to be able to make my own decisions while I can, and not be at the mercy of my kids or those government organizations..."
She is happy with her decision, and just spent her first Thanksgiving and Christmas with her kids in 12 years - but she's not looking forward to the next 4 months of cold - but she chose an apartment in a small town she likes (her kids would have moved her to their city) where she has access to other artists, the library, her old doctor...and no city traffic.
But I miss her so much - we visited every day, painted together, had adventures big and small and laughed a lot - we have plans to visit her in the Spring and she loves to come to our town because we always find new things for her to see and do.