My Great Uncle

Though we aren't particularly close, I am very close to my aunt and she is very close to her father, and now that I am home around my hometown we have been spending alot of time at the hospital with her dad.

He came down with a nasty infection in the chest not long ago, and on top of that he has i think its called polymyalgia and parkinsons. Was better for a couple of days but has gone right back to spiking a very high fever and being very out of it, just not attached to reality at all.

He is in his eighties, eighty three i think and has grown so frail. It is very hard to comfort him as he does not often know who we are. Sometimes however he is quite funny - the other day his son was feeding him dinner and he said out of the blue " you look like (my sons name)" and his son said "you look like (dad's name too" and i guess he had a good laugh over that.

We have thought about bringing his little dog up to the hospital for a visit but are scared it might make him more lonely for home if he has to miss her too, considering he is not thinking about her right now.

The sad part in this, is he could go any day. And really, my aunt and I have talked about it maybe being better that he does go soon, if for no reason other than the fact that he won't have to get better just to get ill again or have to go to a home where he would be miserable - him and his wife still live in their own home.

On top of all this, my great aunt has been fighting cancer for almost ten years now and this is just wearing her out completely. I fear that it might end up sending her into a bad bout of illness too, though shes already proven that shes pretty darn strong.

Is it wrong to think it might be better for someone to go now, than to pray for them to hang on and get better? Considering it is not thought that he will ever entirely come back to reality...

hon I see nothing wrong with it at all. we did with my mom. she just kept hanging on so I started praying the other way. for God to go ahead and take her. I too have an aunt right now that it does not look good at all. so again I will pray. My thoughts are with you and your family during this rough time.

Rainbowzz ((( Hug ))) ,,,,,,, Maybe not his dog , but one of those hospital volunteer dogs . ( if they have it in social type program ) .

. That Your Great Uncle is still getting some LOL,. And Your Great Aunt Being a Fighter.

.We never wish pain,,,,,and Always Wish for More Time.>>>>>> . . P E A C E . Rainbowzz .

Thanks both of you.

He is not much better. My great aunt made the choice to remove his antibiotics and IV fluids. This most likely means that since he cannot eat he is on the way out.

Today he was hallucinating, but he is hallucinating pleasant things which I am ever so thankful for. Puppies, Kittens, old friends from the past like the Dogherty boys he hung out with as a boy. So i think it is comforting him a bit.

Still praying that if he goes it will be peaceful.

Cool Rainzz (((((((( Hugs )))))))

Just an update..

My great uncle billy did indeed pass away a short time ago. he was surrounded by his wife, his son, and his daugter who all held him as he took his last breath.

He chose to not have a funeral or wake, but to have a small graveside service in the spring.

((( Rainbowzz )))

I am so sorry hon for your loss. I know in times like these it hurts and nothing I can say will make you feel better. just know we are all here for you anytime.

(((Rainbow)))

I wanted to add about the dream I had the other day about my great uncle.

I dreamed myself and several family members were sitting around in his house, and in the dream I knew and was aware that he had died - it was like we were gathering there afterward.

I looked at the couch and my mother was sitting there, and right beside her was my great uncle, looking elderly but healthy again. At first in the dream I was scared, and I tried to tell my mother with a broken voice that he was sitting beside her, and did she see him - she did not.

The feeling of fear passed as I realized that he had come to visit and say goodbye to his family. The next thing that happened in the dream was he was standing by the doorway in the kitchen, and he was restored to the age of 25 or 30 maybe, very healthy and vivacious. It was as if I was witnessing the transition of his spirit before it left the earth.

I woke up with a sense that he was ok, and would be alright, and had truly passed on to the next life. I shared this immediatly with my aunt, his daughter, who agreed and said she had had the sense of him being restored to youth after he died.

I thought I would share this dream as I found it particularly interesting and reassuring, and to see what everyone else thought.

Wow, Rainbowzz! What a dream! Dreams can tell so much. I am happy the dream seemed to bring contentment. It does indeed feel reassuring. I send big hugs your way. Thank you for sharing this. It has brightened my heart tremendously.