My sweet grandmother passed early this morning around 3 am with her family at her side. She had made a turn for the worse on Sunday, and we knew we didn't have much time left with her. My sister and I went to AL on Monday and were so blessed to spend one of her "good" days with her. She was lucid, though medicated, and we were able to tell her how much we loved her. (As though she didn't know!) She worsened drastically on Thurs., and we had planned on going back anyway. She was still somewhat alert and talking at times, but we knew she was much weaker. On Friday, we all knew that it wouldn't be much longer before our Lord took her home. For 12 hours she hung on to those last few moments with us. When she passed, she had her husband of 66 years, her daughter, her son, her daughter-in-law, me and my sister, her caregiver Penny (who was sent from God to us), and the most wonderful hospice nurse, Claudia. That woman is an absolute saint and was so selfless with her time, words, hugs, and reassurance through this entire period. We are so grateful that our grandmother was in such good hands. Although I still cannot control my emotions at times, I am so happy that she is now free from her physical ailments. If you knew her situation, then you would understand how this can be a moment of sadness and still be joyful at the same time. Before her health started to fail, she was such a lively and active woman. She kept her quick wit and sense of humor until the end. Now I take comfort in knowing that she has been reunited with her parents and siblings again. She can walk again, eat again, and use those hands free from her horrible arthritis. I thank God for those precious moments that I had this week with her when it was just the two of us, and I was holding her hand. She will be greatly missed, and I look forward to seeing her again soon.
On another incredibly sad note, my sister's sweet English bulldog, Lola, was hit by a car early this afternoon and killed. We came back to Memphis early this morning to be with our spouses and to return with them tomorrow. Jenn's friend's husband came upon Lola after she was hit and was so sweet to take her back to their house before telling Jenn and Steve about her. They are completely devastated, as are we all. She was quite a dog and was always so happy to see you. She was my sister and Steve's first "baby" before they even married and had children. They are having a tough time figuring out how to tell my 3 year old nephew about grandmother and Lola. I can only pray that Carter will be okay with all of this and not be too confused.
God has been so good to our family and gave us almost 83 years of the woman who inspired me to follow in her footsteps and become a nurse. I can only hope that I can be a fraction of the wonderful woman that she was.
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