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rootofnewtAnother one of my father's relatives (an aunt this time) has died. I didn't know Frieda well, but she was one of the few women in my grandfather's family whom i could always recognize.
She was always a vibrant woman. She got sick a couple years ago and, for a year, was treated for insulin-dependent diabetes. Then they discovered she wasn't diabetic, but in the mid-stages of Parkinson's. Last weekend, she fell and broke her leg while visiting a relative. She went into surgery to pin the leg and never came out from the anaesthetic. She was in a coma for a week. They unplugged life support yesterday and she passed on in the afternoon.
I'm mourning Frieda, but I think I'm really mourning future losses. I'm well aware that my parents are not immortal, nor are my living grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, lovers, friends, or myself. While I accept death as a necessary and natural part of life, I have a real problem accepting loss.
And I know that, as my grandparents' generation slowly passes on, my parents' gets closer. My great-grandmother is probably immortal.
My dad is driving down to Mississippi (from Indiana) today. I'm worried about him, but mom says he has his orders. I'm not sure whether those orders are to avoid stress, avoid death, or come back home. Probably all of the above. He had a series of heart attacks three years ago and, after trying to go back to work, is now retired. For a 51-year old Type A, that was an extremely hard blow.
I wish I could be with him.
She was always a vibrant woman. She got sick a couple years ago and, for a year, was treated for insulin-dependent diabetes. Then they discovered she wasn't diabetic, but in the mid-stages of Parkinson's. Last weekend, she fell and broke her leg while visiting a relative. She went into surgery to pin the leg and never came out from the anaesthetic. She was in a coma for a week. They unplugged life support yesterday and she passed on in the afternoon.
I'm mourning Frieda, but I think I'm really mourning future losses. I'm well aware that my parents are not immortal, nor are my living grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, lovers, friends, or myself. While I accept death as a necessary and natural part of life, I have a real problem accepting loss.
And I know that, as my grandparents' generation slowly passes on, my parents' gets closer. My great-grandmother is probably immortal.
My dad is driving down to Mississippi (from Indiana) today. I'm worried about him, but mom says he has his orders. I'm not sure whether those orders are to avoid stress, avoid death, or come back home. Probably all of the above. He had a series of heart attacks three years ago and, after trying to go back to work, is now retired. For a 51-year old Type A, that was an extremely hard blow.
I wish I could be with him.
