ABSTRACT
THE THIRD STAGE, the stage of bargaining, is less well known but equally helpful to the patient, though only for brief periods of time. If we have been unable to face the sad facts in the first period and have been angry at people and God in the second phase, maybe we can succeed in entering into some sort of an agreement which may postpone the inevitable happening: “If God has decided to take us from this earth and he did not respond to my angry pleas, he may be more favorable if I ask nicely.” We are all familiar with this reaction when we observe our children first demanding, then asking for a favor. They may not accept our “No” when they want to spend a night in a friend’s house. They may be angry and stamp their foot. They may lock themselves in their bedroom and temporarily express their anger by rejecting us. But they will also have second thoughts. They may consider another approach. They will come out eventually, volunteer to do some tasks around the house, which under normal circumstances we never succeeded in getting them to do, and then tell us, “If I am very good all week and wash the dishes every evening, then will you let me go?” There is a slight chance naturally that we will accept the bargain and the child will get what was previously denied.
