I have spent the last couple of weeks dealing with the impending death of a wonderful 89 year old man. I had the pleasure of spending time with him a week ago and even then the inevitable was close.
I remember just a year ago hearing his tales of WWII as a prisoner of war, and then, now, watching him in his hospice bed, marveling at his graciousness. Remembering his tales of survival, bravery, and courage…yet, death is the one challenge that we all must meet and yield too…even the bravest of us. The solace: he will meet his beloved wives Edith and Betty and be reunited with his two daughters who were killed in a car accident while teens…that’s his reward…
Tonight we talked to him. We talked, he spoke in “sounds” not specific words. We knew he heard us, we couldn’t understand his words, but we knew he heard our lame “jokes”. The jokes that tickled us all when we visited last.
And then I think of Patti, what a wonderful daughter, one we should all wish for. The daughter who is there to hold his hand, feed him ice chips, and manage all the people who have his fate in their hands.
I have not been blogging much, as all the deaths I have been faced with are flooding me…that’s what grief does. No harm, no foul…death is death and every death creates a resurgence in us all…normal, no doubt.
So, I will be in and out…with various tales…
Keep on keeping on,
Beth
