Grandpa died this afternoon. It’s been just under a week since the nurse indicated that he was transitioning (a process that can take anywhere from hours to weeks) so we have expected it soon. Mom let me know by text within minutes of Marilyn observing him pass. I’m grateful that over the last several weeks I’ve seen signs of Mom finding an equilibrium of being able to go tend to Grandpa somewhat without feeling manipulated or taken advantage of in the process.
I was surprised a few minutes after getting the news that it actually hit me. I had thought I was all prepared (and mostly I was) but there was a jolt of loss to have Grandpa’s mortal journey concluded. It wasn’t sadness (because he can finally be with Grandma who completed him) but it was poignant.
Unrelated to Grandpa’s passing, I was finally able to put into words a philosophy that I have been trying to live for a few months now: try not to let a positive/complementary/building sentiment go unexpressed. For example today I made a point to express appreciation for Laura that she attended the puppet show Noah was doing in school and I also made sure she got credit for cooking dinner. In earlier years I would likely have said nothing about one or both of those things.
Leave a Reply