a sad day

Last week my father in-law lost his battle with prostate cancer when he died 1925 January 31st at the age of 82. He had been married to my mother in-law for an amazing 58 years, fathered five daughters, grandfathered 11 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren.

"Bert" described himself as a simple man. He raised and fed his family through income he earned as a commercial sign painter (a lost art). Bert painted billboards in Chicago for over 30 years and in Sevierville/Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg (TN) for over 10 years before retiring in his 70's. He was an amazing guy that defined the meaning of a hard days work and had a great sense of humor.

I've been present for 4 deaths and his was the first where I was actually holding someone (giving meds) as they died. My sister in-law is an amazing nurse as she provided a majority of his care over the past few months. It was an honor to assist my sister in-law with his care in his final hours. I will never forget the experience.

You may have heard of people 'waiting' to die. Until this experience I did not put much belief in that way of thinking. But now I am a believer. Even up to the very last hour Bert was asking for people to come into his bedroom to see him. The few times he was able to recognize his surroundings he spent trying to make us laugh by cracking a funny face. It was truly amazing and I have never seen anything like it.

Here's to you, Bert.

As he liked to say... "See ya later!"