Today I found out a very dear friend of mine is at the end of his life. Sadly he will die before the end of the year and likely before the end of the week. He's fifty and he's had cancer for two and a half years now.
My friend has decided to die in his parent's home and his four children are with him. At every moment of the day he has someone with him and his children are taking turns sleeping beside him. My friend's diagnosis was such a shock at the time.
He's done everything he can to hold on to life without making his last years unbearable.
Last week his ex-wife and best friend took him for a swim, his final swim, in the wide ocean.
It is truly devastating news to hear that our friend will no longer walk among us. Its devastating to think that he will never hold his grandchildren or walk his daughters down the aisle. I am comforted by knowing that he will no longer suffer and for the last moments he has in this world he is with the most important people in his life.
Losing someone over a long period of time isn't like losing someone suddenly. We have had time to visit and say goodbye. There'll still be a gap when he's gone. My friend's children are fortunate to have these precious moments with him, at home, rather than in palliative care, where they can participate in his care and help him into the next world.
"Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing. And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb. And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance." Kahlil Gibran
Today I shall farewell one of the most beautiful men I know. I salute one of the most wonderful fathers I have ever met. He may never hold his grandchildren but everyone who knew him will carry his memory with them.
May you sing and climb, dance and eat your way into the next world Stevie. I love you.
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