The truism that "the dignity of the dying comes second to the needs of the clearly living" is very clear in Robyn Davidson's piece "Organic Matter" (May). Let's hope Monthly readers will reconsider their own plans for disposal, and make the necessary changes to their wills now. The recent talk of selling one's organs for transplant is abhorrent, but it has raised awareness of the dreadful daily waste of body parts through the ecologically costly choice of cremation. And, as the ABC reported, by 2050 the full-house sign will go up in cemeteries. We should make alternate arrangements for ourselves, so that we can give the great gift of life to someone who will otherwise die.

Sadly, I am allergic to human serum, which makes my body good for no one. This, then, is my plan: I have told my family that I will donate my brain for research, as I believe it will be used to investigate whether the regular playing of duplicate bridge prevents Alzheimer's (I play for self-protection a couple of times a week) - so that will get rid of the head. The rest is to go to the zoo: preferably to be fed to the lions, but not in front of the children, of course; just as a late-night delicacy, perhaps? My bones will be crunched up by the lions and will become part of the bagged zoo poo which is available in nurseries. I like to fantasise that my remains will spurt the growth of some wonderful new food and be eaten, and thus I will come full circle into the next life.