Reply With Quoteits definitly a hard thing no matter what. i bet he has told some awesome storys. man if ya could write a book. sounds like he was one hell of a person.
I remember the country tune "These Old Eyes" that tells a story about a dieing dad, and what he's seen in his lifetime.
My wifes dad is now passing, he doesn't want us giving him any medication or any more attempts to keep him alive, just to be let go.
Wife said probably by tomorrow morning he'll be gone.
He's flirting with 90, and despite being from a privleged family, had a distinguished and instrumental career & eventually gaining the rank of Captain in the US Coast Guard from WW2 on.
He was at the Normandy invasion, and most don't realize, the US Coast Guard got chopped up pretty bad there. They took horrendous bloody casualities in action.
The US Coast Guard did alot in the English channel too, including locating and sinking German U boats, & also the Bismark, leading to it's sinking too. He was right in the middle of it all.
I can't help but think of what "these old eyes" have seen in his lifetime when I look at the guy while he is fading away. A man of incredable character.
Another great WW2 vet is about to pass before us.
Saw the depression, the big war, raised a couple of teriffic kids, leaving a charming little Swiss wife & daughter that are sweet as sugar.
My wife is all prepaired I guess, I never seem to be ready when someone in the family is slowly on their way out.
its definitly a hard thing no matter what. i bet he has told some awesome storys. man if ya could write a book. sounds like he was one hell of a person.
Be strong bro, not so much for you, but for your wife, she's gonna need you....and for him....best to you, may the Lord bless you and keep you through all of this....
It is a very sad moment when you lose your parents, so to all of you that are lucky enough to still have them with you, think about how they should be treated and how you will feel when they leave this place, appreciate them and love them for the time passes quickly.NSF
Prepared is a damn big word, and even moreso when attached to reaching the end of life.
Your F-I-L has lived a very full, very worthwhile life from the sound of it, and he has clearly made a huge difference in the world while he lived in it.
He made a difference, he has watched his children grow and met his grandchildren, and now, toward the end, he is a position to still have some say in how he wants it to end.
I think that is a full, blessed life. So many of us don't have those blessings, and don't have that level of control at the end.
Prepared? No, probably not. Humans are wired with self preservation as a high-priority. Leaving loved ones behind and crossing into the breach alone isn't something to take lightly.
My wife's grandmother is 94, and has been a widow for 7 years. She is a woman of incredible faith, and when I see her I am always moved by her wisdom and a certain combination of strength and fragility that are strangely powerful.
She often wonders outloud why she has lived so long; and speaks of her readiness to see, "The Great Beyond", and to be re-united with her husband of over 65 years.
She is not only prepared, she is ready. I tell her, "Granny, you are still here for a reason, your mission isn't over, you still have something to teach, perhaps my boys have something to learn from you yet."
Losing these heros from WWII, the men and women who quite literally saved the world from an evil many of us cannot fathom is weakening this country.
There are so many stories out there that have never been told, and never will be.
Ross, you and yours will be in our thoughts and prayers tonight. Stay close to Alice, I know she is strong but the days ahead will exhaust her. Cindy lost her father one year ago last St. Valentine's Day, and she is still recovering.
Prepared is a damn big word, and even moreso when attached to reaching the end of life.
Your F-I-L has lived a very full, very worthwhile life from the sound of it, and he has clearly made a huge difference in the world while he lived in it.
He made a difference, he has watched his children grow and met his grandchildren, and now, toward the end, he is a position to still have some say in how he wants it to end.
I think that is a full, blessed life. So many of us don't have those blessings, and don't have that level of control at the end.
Prepared? No, probably not. Humans are wired with self preservation as a high-priority. Leaving loved ones behind and crossing into the breach alone isn't something to take lightly.
My wife's grandmother is 94, and has been a widow for 7 years. She is a woman of incredible faith, and when I see her I am always moved by her wisdom and a certain combination of strength and fragility that are strangely powerful.
She often wonders outloud why she has lived so long; and speaks of her readiness to see, "The Great Beyond", and to be re-united with her husband of over 65 years.
She is not only prepared, she is ready. I tell her, "Granny, you are still here for a reason, your mission isn't over, you still have something to teach, perhaps my boys have something to learn from you yet."
Losing these heros from WWII, the men and women who quite literally saved the world from an evil many of us cannot fathom is weakening this country.
There are so many stories out there that have never been told, and never will be.
Ross, you and yours will be in our thoughts and prayers tonight. Stay close to Alice, I know she is strong but the days ahead will exhaust her. Cindy lost her father one year ago last St. Valentine's Day, and she is still recovering.
Well said, very well said..he's lucky to have a friend like you....
my Dad and Mom are both 86 and doing OK but its hard to think of them gone
my dad was in WWII in the Philippine Islands he rarely talks about war but but when he does I cant believe the thing's they endured
and my mom worked at a artillery plant
my Dad and Mom are both 86 and doing OK but its hard to think of them gone
my dad was in WWII in the Philippine Islands he rarely talks about war but but when he does I cant believe the thing's they endured
and my mom worked at a artillery plant
In the Philippines?? He wasn't part of the Bataan death march was he?? Or did he return with McArthur??? If he was in Bataan, shake his hand for me, heck, even if he wasn't, shake it for me...thanks..
I would say we merely begin to understand the concept better.
We are NEVER prepared. However, as you grow older and gain experience, you realize that the longer you live the more people you will see pass.
This is something not everybody understands - especially those that have yet to lose a close personal friend/family member.
I guess I should own-up here, I ain't no poet or expert.
My father died December 19th 1983, at 4:47 in the afternoon.
A short battle with cancer took him.
He was 58, I was 23.
He was my best friend.
His first grandchild was born the following May, 3 days prior to what would have been Dad's 59th birthday. Dad got to feel Christopher move in inside Cindy's tummy; he even talked to him a bit.
So I have had a long, long time to think, and to learn to appreciate, and to wonder.
And to cry, which I still do from time to time, when I work on his hot rod, or fiddle with his guitar..
Or see him in the eyes of his grandson...
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