Grandmother (part II)

It’s Wednesday and Dad called.  He said she was not going to last much longer, and he asked me if I wanted to say something to her as he held the phone to her ear.  He said she would probably not hear me, but I wanted to talk to her anyway.  I told her thanks for being a wonderful grandmother, and she was a special person.  I told her Ashton, Lauren, and Paul thought the same thing.  Paul never really saw his grandparents because they lived so far away.  Two passed away when he was in high school or college; three before he was born.  She has been a grandmother to him as well.  I told her she needed Jesus because He was the most important person, and to ask Him into her heart.  I cried as I spoke to her.  These were the last words I would say to her.

Dad said if she passed away the plans were for the memorial service to be Saturday.  There will not be an open casket because she is going to be cremated right away.  She did not want people to see her that way.

I got a text message from my older sister Joann on January 5, 2012.  She mentioned Grandmother was finally at peace and no longer in pain and had passed away at 2:40 p.m.  The memorial service will be Saturday at 2:00 p.m. at her church on St. Simons.  A service will be held at the cemetery in Savannah in the upcoming weeks when it’s convenient for us and our cousins. 

I called Dad this night because I wanted to know if he wanted us to stay in a hotel.  I knew things would be hectic around the house, and I did not want to make things worse.  He wanted my family to stay at his house.  Dad was excited to see everyone.  He was very talkative about everything.  I was a little surprised.  I guess he was a little relieved because he had taken care of her finances, paid her bills, and lots of others things for years.  And most importantly, she was not suffering anymore.

Dad sent a follow up email before we left.  It stated, “Mother passed away peacefully today @ 2:40PM.  My Joann was hugging her at that moment.”  He also gave information about her memorial service and burial.