Love, as with all other things, brings pain and suffering. Michael Lassell's poem, " How to Watch Your Brother Die," brings a lot of different issues to the table. From reading this poem, I don't believe that it is Lassell's brother who is actually dying, but rather a close friend, and that friend's own brother, whom he had known in his life. The issues that are discussed in this poem are those of which that hit very close to home in today's society. Aids is a disease that has no present cure and can be contracted through many different ways whether it is from drug use, sexual contact, and even blood transfusions. In Lassell's essay he talks about a brother who get's a call that his brother is dying in California. Obviously, from the way that the poem sounds, these two brothers had problems earlier in life and had not been on speaking terms, and now one of the brother's is dying from a life threatening disease.
Now that you know the basis for this poem, I am going to explain some of the major points that are inside of it. Lassell is trying to show the pain that a brother feels for not accepting his brother's choices. Now in the time of death, there is nothing one can do to change the things of the past. Lassell says," Forgive him out loud, even if he can't hear you. Realize the scar will be all that's left of him" (Lassell 647). This phrase goes to show that no matter what has happened in the past, try to look past it, and see the better side of it. Okay, so you weren't happy with your brother's sexual preferences, but learn to look past them and think about what he wanted. That is all that matters; what he wanted. Even though you don't believe that it is the right choice, it was HIS choice, and you have to learn to accept it and respect his wishes.
When the lover and the brother are drinking coffee in the cafeteria, the lover states, (talking about the love of two men)" It's just like a wife, only the commitment is deeper because the odds against you are so much greater" ( Lassell 648).
