MEDICAL MARIJUANA A U.S. "RIGHT"

At first I felt badly about having to work on the Fourth of July. I
need money pretty badly and I had an offer to disassemble a set of
stairs to an upper deck for a fair price. I also did it in part
because I know the Multiple Sclerosis patient who lives at that house
couldn't do it by himself, although he could physically help me do
it.

Shortly after noon he had to take a break to take some medicine, as
his muscles were becoming increasingly stiff and pain was creeping
into the equation. Having lost my wife after her 32-year battle with
MS, I am sensitive to the importance of the medicine my friend was
about to take. After only a few puffs of marijuana he was ready to
resume our chores. He was alert and without stiffness or pain.

We finished the job while talking about the Declaration of
Independence and the irony of how it obviously covered medical
marijuana under the "big three" that everybody can quote - life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness. My friend certainly wouldn't
have had to hide from Thomas Jefferson. All three can be applied to
medical marijuana.

So, there I was, bearing witness to someone not giving in to
oppression on Independence Day. I didn't feel bad anymore about not
being able to celebrate the birth of our nation because I had to work.
I was celebrating it by witnessing the American spirit that existed
233 years ago. Best of all, according to that revered document, it is
God who gave my friend the right to do what he had to do. It was a
good day indeed.

Jim Miller

TOMS RIVER