Dear Angela,
Thank you for taking the time to share your words of wisdom. It was tough losing my mom and dad within a year of each other. I cannot imagine what it would be like to suffer a loss like yours, less than three months apart.
I admire you that you spent those final days with your parents. It does feel good to hold your head high because you took care of parents who took care of you for so much of our lives.
I am working on a video memorial for my mom and dad because their lives were so intertwined. After 60 years of marriage it is no wonder my dad survived a little over a year without my mom. There is something mystical about the husband and wife union that lasts for so long, a rarity in the world today.
Now that they are gone, the freedom to do whatever I want is a little daunting. How do you restructure your life when previously there was no freedom, only service 24-7. It is like a new lease on life but there is the emotional void you describe.
After so many years, I know there is nothing that can fill that gaping hole in my life. There is no one that can give you the total acceptance and support like a parent. I guess I will have to wait and see what God wants me to do next. I do feel motivated to share what I learned over the last 4 years with others in my generation who could definitely benefit from my mistakes and the things I learned.
If everything is set up in advance correctly, life can be more enjoyable and less stressful when taking care of dying parents. You just don’t know how long they will last…one day or ten years. It is tough putting your life on hold for so long with the massive wave of uncertainty, the ups and downs, the life and death decisions. What a roller coaster ride is has been. I guess I am a better person from having experienced the extremes of existence for so long.
take care,
ralph