Ever have that feeling like everything is just crumbling beneath you? That feeling like the rug was just pulled beneath your feet? It has to be one of the worst feelings in the world! I recall that feeling.... January 1st I called my mom and spoke to her for a little bit in the evening. About 20 minutes later I tried again but got no answer. So I called my sister and told her "Hey, let mom know there are supposed to be really good coupons in the paper today so pick up some extras!" .... I won't forget that moment.... it's like the rug was being yanked ever so slowly out from under me as she said "Did you talk to mom? Dad's on his way to the hospital... he fell." I don't know a whole lot more about what was going on. I talked to my brother for a second on the phone after I hung up with my sister and told him what happened. We both surmised he fell out of bed and he went to the hospital basically because he could have fractured his leg which could be dangerous. He said it's the most "vascular bone" in the body or something I vaguely recall. Then the call came from my mom.... that's when the rug really began to move and I realized this was not just a little shaking ground... it could be serious."Dad fell out of bed, I told him to go to the hospital but he said he was okay"...... as she told me everything I tried to soak it up surmising it was probably another mild heart attack.... and if anyone could have one and just walk away like it was nothing a few days later, it was my dad! The man who had multiple heart attacks and multiple strokes. Little did I know, that was not the case. My dad got to the hospital, my mom came not long after, and as they took him in she said he told her "I love you... tell the kids I love them."
From my understanding they had to revive him during surgery. He was on a special machine that was making his heart work. It was some sort of new technology and if there was anything that could help him at all... that's what it would be. We would not know until the morning how he was. It was a 24 hour period of icing him down and then the warm up period. Waiting..... waiting........
The next morning I went to the gym, worked out trying to get my mind off of everything but could not. I came home, told my husband I knew in my gut it was not good we need to pack up the kids and go. I spoke to my sister and brother in law and they said the same thing, get down there. We packed 5 kids and ourselves in a matter of 20 minutes and got on the road. About 15 minutes into the ride I called to tell them we were on our way and while on the phone my sister in law informed me his vitals were very unstable. The family decided that if he coded, they were not going to call a code blue. It's what he would want. I cried the whole ride there.... I have to say it was THE longest ride to Ohio in my life although my husband probably got us there the fastest. It's a a blur and in a fog.That night I was able to be with my dad one last time.... one last time to give him a hug.... one last time to hold his hand..... one last time to give him a kiss on his cheek. It broke my heart to say goodbye to the man who is my dad, my father, the man that no matter how many arguments we got into - he still loved me. My dad... a man who worked his butt off, cared about his family more than life itself..... who found humor in every situation! Gathered around my dad, was his wife (my mom), 5 children, his granddaughter, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, ex-daughter-in-law, and son's pastor... and on the phone his 2 sons in Alabama. We prayed..... we cried..... we laughed..... as at his side our hearts broke in two as to everyone of us it felt like the rug had been pulled out from beneath us as his life had so quickly been taken. Peacefully my dad went home to be with the Lord. My heart still aches for him.... for all his silly jokes and crazy things he did! He was an amazing dad.... I don't know why God took him so early at only 69 but I am sure there is a reason. But I do know he is probably up there in Heaven having a grand time..... looking down at us anxious for our arrivals too!
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“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid."
John 14:27
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