'Rene's final days
'Rene made it clear after her January/February 2013 stint in the hospital and rehab that she wanted to never set foot again in any health care institution. She knew her bladder cancer would eventually take her life, but she wished to do it at home. With the wonderful support of hospice from February on, and the nearly heroic efforts of the family - particularly my Dad, Karen, and Seth, she got her wish.
Seth could secure her cooperation when no one else could, whether to take a pill or eat or move. "I want Seth" she would say. The hospice nurse later said she had only once before seen a grandson care for a grandparent like Seth did 'Rene.
As 'Rene became bed ridden and her condition became critical, Linda gave up her life in Georgia to come help. She arrived a few weeks before Christmas. Jordan arrived from his college in British Columbia on December 21, and Bill arrived that same weekend. So we were all here - Dad, Karen, Linda, Bill, Seth, Ian, Liz, Jordan, Jim and me. We all took turns sitting with her. She was quite conscious right up to the night she died, so we talked with her, read poems, Shakespeare, and the Bible to her, and played all kinds of music.
Jim gave her a private concert one night, while Liz and I sang along. Although she could barely talk, she would smile and say "That's beautiful." The second to last afternoon I played Bach's B Minor Mass, St. Matthew's Passion, and the Brandenburgs. Bach was the music of the spheres to her. I would say "Oh, I love this movement!" And she would croak out "I do too." We listened to the "Kriste" duet from the B Minor Mass that we had sung together long ago at the University Hills Church when I was in High School. You could see it still seemed worth living to be able to hear music like that.
We celebrated our traditional Christmas Eve dinner without her. Under the circumstances, we cut down the variety of traditional Swedish dishes and limited it to just the family rather than the usual party. But we sang the traditional carols in their room by her bed. When we sang "Joy to the World," her favorite hymn, she broke into a smile. Singing in harmony the final Christmas tune, a gentle "Silent Night," by her bed, brought tears to our eyes, knowing as the last notes faded away that this would be the last Christmas carol with our mom.
On the 27th while I was with her, she mumbled "My mother is coming." Surprised, I asked her to repeat it. But instead she said "Your mother is leaving." She pointed and reached her hands into the air, and Linda and I both asked her what she saw, but she wouldn't say anything.
On the 28th, we all had a chance to see her and tell her we love her. When I was taking my turn alone with her,she held my hand and just stared at with me with all the love she could gather from her soul. She wanted to make sure I knew. I went down to dinner with the rest of the family, who were all gathered together. When we went back up to see her after dinner, she was unconscious.
Her breathing had been labored, so it woke Joe when it stopped at about 3:30 am on the 29th. He woke Karen, who awakened her boys and me, and I woke everyone else. We were all together within an hour at the house. We cried, and sang, and talked by her bedside. We may have lost her, but her love filled the room that night.