“She discussed it with such peace and ease. Perhaps because she knew who would be waiting on the other side, my dad.”
‘I found her confused and disheveled. Something was VERY wrong.’: Woman recounts mother’s last days, ‘She’s reunited with the love of her life’
‘Whatever it is, we can fix it.’ She was exceeding milestones, then she started regressing.’: Parents pass law to save others after losing daughter to Krabbe disease
“Justin asked, ‘Is she okay?’ They said, ‘Yes, she is perfect!’ We heard a knock on the door. Our world shattered. I prayed they’d find a cure.”
‘My teacher told the class, ‘You’ll never meet anyone with AIDS.’ I sat silently screaming, ‘I HAVE IT. YOU KNOW ME!’: HIV ‘stigma warrior’ details journey with virus
“I was getting ready for senior prom when I started throwing up. I slipped out of my Bebe cocktail dress and into sweats. My vision faded. The doctors warned, ‘You’ve gone blind. We have no idea if your vision will come back.’ Soon, I was told I’d be moved to hospice. ‘You’re going to die.'”
‘If I make her breakfast at 3 a.m. and wash her hair, maybe I can save her!’ I won’t tell her yet.’: Daughter takes care of mom before she passes, ‘I never gave up on you’
“‘Why me?’ she’d ask. But I was 22 and very much alive, how could I know? ‘We aren’t done fighting.’”
‘Every night, we create these letters for hospice patients and nursing home residents who aren’t allowed visitors right now.’: Family share acts of kindness for ‘lonely’ elderly during pandemic
“There are so many people out there unable to have their loved ones visit them at all. Knowing how scared and lonely this time may be for them just breaks my heart.”
‘The cancer was stealing him. ‘It’s okay for you to go now.’ He nodded his head and went into a deep sleep.’: Hospice nurse shares touching last moments with dad diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma
“Alone with him, I whispered that he had done such a good job fighting. I reassured him that we’d be alright even though we didn’t believe it at the time. I didn’t want to leave the room. I am honored I got to see my dad out. That was his gift to me.”
‘Were you bit by a mosquito during pregnancy?’ The doctor said, ‘I’m having a hard time finding the baby’s head.’: Mom births miracle baby with microcephaly, ‘He brings us endless joy!’
“Every diaper I got to change came with so much excitement. Every feeding was so special to me. But secretly, I was still scared. My heart was attached, but my mind knew to keep a distance, just in case. And then I felt it. ‘This baby isn’t going anywhere.’”
‘Do you think you’re dying?’ my husband asked. I couldn’t even hold my baby. ‘I don’t know, maybe?’: Woman beats breast cancer despite all odds, ‘I had one foot in eternity, I felt it’
“I had one foot in eternity, I felt it. With no prior treatment, the doctor looked at me and told me I was ‘too far gone’ and to get my affairs in order. I thought for sure this was the end of me. My husband and I rejected that answer.”
‘She took her last breath. Over 400 people showed at her funeral, even on the busiest day of the week. That is the legacy she had.’: Woman pens sweet tribute to mother, ‘we will never stop hoping to see you again’
“After losing my mom, I once again feel like that lost little girl in the department store, like the whole world has collapsed. Only this time, no amount of screaming, crying, begging will bring her back. Not a day goes by I don’t recall her. A taste, a smell, a word, a touch. When all else fails, I turn to the memories. But I literally cannot cry, cannot shed a single tear, without also smiling. THAT is the kind of love she left behind.”
‘Someone’s sitting here.’ I froze. ’Mom, it’s ME. Lauren.’ Her cheeks became red with embarrassment.’: Young woman’s emotional journey with mom’s Alzheimer’s, ‘It’s like mourning someone who is still alive’
“I said, ‘I love you,’ and she didn’t say it back. You lose so much of the person along the way that by the end, you are practically begging for them to die. But at the same time, you dread the thought of it. I say, ‘See ya later,’ and she says, ‘Alligator.’ You can’t tell me she’s not still in there.”
