October 17, 2006

My mom had not been well for the last 5 years of her life. She did live for almost 2 years at the nursing home. She had become quite frail and was not eating too much.

On the Sunday I went to see her and she was sitting up in her wheelchair and having a bit of something to eat. The next day was as good friend’s birthday. I took him out to eat. It was to be a long time before I wanted to go back to that restaurant. Then I went on to see my mom. I could see that she was sleeping and the nurse said that she had not wanted to get up.

Within 12 hours I received the phone call saying that my mom had died. Now it was up to me to make all the arrangements for the funeral. I did that with many phone calls.

Kathi came in the next evening. We had to take a trip to Lachute to the funeral home. She and the funeral director had a nice chat about old times at school. His mom and my mom had been long time curling companions.

The day of the funeral 2 close friends came to Lachute with Kathi and I. There were a number of people that we knew at the service. One had worked in the company office with my dad. The neighbours who had been so helpful to my mom stopped by before the service. There were a number of women from the Lachute Hospital Auxiliary. That had been the place where my mom had volunteered for many years.

The service was simple and as my mom would have liked it. The flowers were lovely. Kathi and I had chosen them. When we went up to the cemetery it was pouring rain.

The minister who took the service said it was a good thing to bring her back home to Lachute and it was.

My life was different after my mom’s death. After her being sick for more than 5 years I no longer had to get out to visit her in Lachute and then in Ottawa after she moved here. I also was the executor for the estate and that kept me busy.