Posted: May 15, 08 11:59am
Dad
The words became a mantra. Please don’t let him be in pain, please don’t let him be afraid. I had never actually watched someone die before.
He was my Wife’s Father, but I called him Dad too. An intestinal blockage had brought us to the hospital, but the cancer was back after three good years. I was going to miss cooking dinner for him. I was going to miss rubbing the top of his balding head.
We all hovered around the bed. Waiting, watching. I watched Dad, watched my Wife. Wondered how she was standing up to the pressure of watching her Father die. Die in a bed on the hospital floor she worked as a registered nurse.
There were six of us on this deathwatch. My wife was at he head of the bed holding her Father’s hand. Our daughter stood next to her, and then came his favorite niece. His Son and Daughter In Law at the foot of the bed, and me at the top on the other side.
He had been in and out of consciousness all morning, but he had been unresponsive for several hours. Then he finally he came around one last time. He looked at each of us, starting with his favorite, my Wife. He had a smile on his face as he recognized everyone he loved. That was, until he got to me. I don’t know where he found the strength, but the smile turned into a laugh, and he slipped away.
