On passing

I mentioned a bit ago that Grandma was in the hospital.

She passed away Saturday afternoon.

Grandpa is doing as well as can be expected, and is being surrounded with support and help from friends in their building, as well as family members. I expect MrsZ and I will try to make a few visits to him over the coming week; nothing overwhelming or major plans, maybe just dessert or dinner, etc.

My parents were both with Grandma when she passed; as mom described it, she sighed, closed her eyes ... and that was it. She hadn't been particularly alert for several days - highly medicated for pain.

It's reminiscent of how my great-grandmother passed; she was more alert but told my parents, "I think I'll take a nap." She closed her eyes and went to sleep ... and that was it.

Mom and Dad went and picked Grandpa up from lunch at his home, and they brought him back to the hospital. Our hospital gets dinged a lot, but it sounds like they did things right in this case - between Grandma passing and Grandpa arriving, they cleaned all the medical "stuff" out and settled her in so she looked to be sleeping.

Mom called me while Grandpa was sitting with Grandma, in her words, "just a few last minutes alone together, grandpa is having some cocoa and quiet." They celebrated their sixty-fifth anniversary this past summer.

It's brought to my mind something that I often try not to think about... the idea of sitting in a hospital watching my partner for life go before me. I don't want to be the last to go.

Requiescat in pace, Grandma. You're always loved.