Finally, Mom Is At Peace

This morning (March 7, 2010) about 6:30, Mom passed away quietly in her sleep. My brother Jeff,his wife Kathy, and I spent most of the night sitting up with her because we knew the time was near. For 19 hours straight until about 2 yesterday afternoon, Mom was talking and moving around a lot. Then, she just went to sleep and lay fairly quietly.

As the night passed, we saw the marks of her illness erased from her face. No longer was her mouth drawn down on one side. She lay quietly, her breathing more and more shallow as the night went on. It was a sad and yet happy time as we relived many of our memories of Mom, the way she grew up and the way we grew up. She was a great mother and we will all miss her.

In truth, she was taken away from us more than three years ago by a disease called Alzheimer’s. The last few years have been very hard for her and for her family. It was especially hard for her. She woke up almost every morning not knowing who she was or who the people around her were. She told me many times she was scared of everything. Now, she is at peace, cradled in Jesus’ arms.

The nurse from Hospice came in, called Serenity Meadows funeral home to have them pick up her body, destroyed the medicines, and filled out a lot of paperwork. She was very nice, as were all of the people from Hospice. The people who cared for Mom from Right at Home Plant City were also very loving and kind and did a good job taking care of Mom. This allowed me to get away from it all a few times a week.

We won’t be having any kind of service here, since most of Mom’s friends and family are still in New York. Instead, Mom will be cremated and later this year – maybe, late spring or early summer, we will have some kind of service in New York. Her ashes will be laid to rest in the Hornby Cemetery not far from her sister Ruth and brother Bert. I’ll announce the details of this as the time gets closer.

Once again i want to thank all of you for your prayers, your good wishes and your support.

Until next time…