“With her love, he lived.

” A movie producer, Jonathan Cavendish,

tells the true story of his parents in the movie entitled as “Breathe.”

In 1958 in Kenya, his father, Robin Cavendish (Andrew Garfield) falls

ill from the poliovirus at the age of twenty-eight, not long after meeting and
marrying his wife Diana (Claire Foy). Reaching his central nervous system,
he was paralyzed from the neck down, unable to speak and unable to breathe
without the assistance of an oxygen respirator. He was only given three
months to live.
In 1960, he was transferred to England he told the twin brothers of
Diana, Bloggs and David Blacker (Tom Hollander), "Let me die," since he
was severely depressed. He was even refusing to see his wife and new-born
son and wishes to be removed from life support. Diana can't stand seeing him
like this, she took the risk of bringing him home, knowing what will be the
consequences. Dr. Entwistle (Jonathan Hyde), objected and told her that he
will die without the ventilator for two minutes. But with the help of Nurse Margaret (Emily Bevan) and Dr.
Khan (Amit Shah), Robin's spirit improves and brighten as he was brought home with his respirator and
meets his only son, Jonathan Cavendish.
Years went on, the couple lives a full and passionate life together, raising their only son. A friend of
Robin, Teddy Hall (Hugh Bonneville) made a wheelchair with a built-in respirator, which allowed him to go
outside and even travel. Along their journey, they met Dr. Clement Aitken (Stephen Mangan), who also
helped them and improved the wheelchair with respirator. He also invited Robin to a conference about
disabled people who only stays in their own rooms and in hospitals. Robin addressing a room full of medical
personnel comparing their hospitals and treatments to prison. He challenges them concerning their patients,
“I implore you; you go back to your hospitals and you tell your disabled patients that they too can truly live.
You all have this power to open the gates and set them free.” And with the living, breathing example of what
is possible in front of them, the whole room applauds. He became an advocate of people with disabilities and
popularizing a wheelchair with a built-in respirator. But then, those glorious and joyful moments of Robin's
life turned into a sorrowful ones, there were nights that made him suffer and also his wife and son, cleaning
up the splashes of blood coming out from his tracheal area, caused by irritation in the lining of his lungs due
to use of oxygen respiration for years.
Reflecting with the movie, as a student nurse, we should not let our patients feel they are like prisons
and hospitals are not jails for them. The film has an important message to transform the lives of thousands of
severely disabled patients. The battle of Robin fought for the value of life which was not just to survive, but
to truly live. “Breathe” does not make the mistake of showing the Cavendishes’ experience but it revealed
through devoted love and the commitment to honour the dignity of the human person, joy and fulfilment are
possible.
“Breathe” reminds us of the Christian truth that we are not our own but we belong to God. Diana
does not let Robin forget this, “Your life, is my life,” she tells him when he has further complications from
decades on a respirator and begins contemplating euthanasia. It is painful to know that in his later years;
Robin Cavendish does choose to end his own life. He decided to have an assisted euthanasia. It is not a
selfish act; it is kind of altruistic in a way, as it was to make life better for Diana and Jonathan, so they would
not have to go through the misery of watching long and painful departing. Even today, the moral and ethical
issues of such a choice are still up for debate. Yet, even if I can’t personally agree with Robin’s choice, I
know it was a joyful and great choice but for Robin, it was another opportunity for self-authority and
autonomy.