About Grandma Eva's last few days

This is long. And has lots of tedious details that may not be too interesting to others. But I wanted to include my writings about those last days I got to spend with Grandma Eva. I wrote several pages not long after she passed away. Here they are...

This past week and a half has been one I want to remember always. My dear, wonderful Grandma Eva passed away last Wednesday morning, August 29, 2018 at 2:27 a.m. She had been feeling unwell for a few days. In fact, on the Saturday before, the nurses at The Gables (assisted living facility where Grandma and Doug have been living since June 15) said they think Grandma must have fallen and hurt her ribs. She started complaining of a pain below her left ribcage, just under her heart. No one saw her fall, and there wasn’t much bruising, but she would show them where it hurt and explain what it felt like, and it definitely sounded like a rib injury. Grandma has been having a hard time with her shortterm memory for the past several months, probably since before Christmas of last year. So, she wasn’t really sure what happened, but just knew she was hurting.

On Sunday, the nurse on duty at the Gables called my dad while he was at church and told him Grandma was not doing well at all and he needed to come see about her. He left church immediately and asked Keith Evans to give his priesthood lesson for him. Once he was with Grandma, a hospice nurse came and they started running a few tests on Grandma. Her oxygen level was quite low – down in the 70s or low 80s, and wouldn’t come up beyond that. They decided to put her on oxygen and see if that helped, and wait for the results of the test to come back.

My mom was in touch with me throughout the day on Sunday, letting me know what was happening with Grandma. I so appreciate being informed and am grateful she is always so willing to share and let me know what’s going on, especially about Grandma Eva. So, Monday morning, I had taken Camille to preschool and was making some fruit leather. Spencer was sick and had stayed home from school and was grinding some wheat kernels because he wanted us to make some whole wheat bread as a fun project. My mom called and said the hospice nurses didn’t think Eva had very much longer to live. According to the tests they had run on her, her heart was giving out. It was pumping erratically and was causing her oxygen levels to fluctuate. In addition, she didn’t seem to have much appetite and wasn’t drinking very much fluids. She had vomited on Sunday evening as well. All these were signs that her body was shutting down and that we probably only had a few more days with her.

It was all so sudden! She had been relatively fine with no real ailments for such a long time. I talked with my mom, then sat in our living room and just cried to myself for a long time, to think of possibly losing her. My mom had said there was a chance the hospice people could be wrong, and that Grandma might rally and get better, but she wasn’t sure… They told us to plan on 5-6 more days with her.

I went to Brian’s office and told him the news. He had seen the text chain my mom had sent, telling the whole Hone family some of these details. He hugged me and let me cry a little more, then told me, “If you want to go, I think you should go. I’m not busy, I can handle things here. I think you should go be with her, if you’d like to.”

I hesitated for a little while. It sounded so nice to get to go be with her. But life keeps going on around here and I do feel quite responsible for our little family and all our kids’ needs. So, I went around doing the house-work things I had planned for the day—laundry and dishes, and got my fruit leather in the oven. I even finished off Spencer’s whole wheat bread project and got it all ready to bake. I got Millie home from preschool, then packed myself up to go. I left around 3pm and drove straight through to Burley, listening to an audiobook. I stopped and got gas and answered some email, then drove on. I got there just around 7pm, to Grandma’s apartment at the Gables. She was sooo cute and so excited to see me! She seemed really lively and perky to me. My parents came in right after I got there, and said she was very much improved from what she had been on Sunday and Monday morning. They were pleasantly surprised to see her feeling quite a bit better.

She was super cute – I sat down on her little hospital bed and she said, “I think we ought to have a sleep over tonight, don’t you?” She scooted to one side of her bed and said, “You could just share this bed with me, don’t you think?” I smiled and laughed with her, and told her I’d probably just sleep at my parents’ house up the road.

At one point, my dad told her it was time to check her oxygen levels, and put the little clamp/reader on her finger. She asked, innocently, “What’s this for?” He started to tell her it’s to check her oxygen, but she cut him off with, “Is this a lie detector??” Then she winked and giggled a little. “Because I always tell the truth, you know?! See there…” she pointed at the reader that was by that point blinking with her oxygen reading. “See! It says, truth! truth! truth! truth!” And then she giggled a lot more while Dad shook his head and laughed under his breath, saying, “You’re in rare form tonight, Mom!” She just giggled some more and kept teasing a bit longer.

Then Trent and Melissa came and brought their kids to visit for a little bit. Grandma leaned in close to me and said, “You know they threw a little party for me here the other night. I think these guys are going to throw me another party, it looks like!” Melissa overheard and smiled and said, “Well, we brought ice cream, so I guess that’s good enough reason for a party!” She then served up ice cream to all the kids, and Grandma even ate five or six bites.

At another point that evening, while Trent and Mel’s kids were there, Grandma leaned over to me and said, “Well, I don’t know where everyone’s going to sleep! We’re going to have to find beds for everyone!” I told her I thought they’d probably just all go back and sleep at Trent’s house and she said, “Well, actually, Trent could just sleep in that bed, right there…” (pointing at Doug’s bed next to hers.) I told her, “I think Doug is sleeping there.” And she answered, “well, he could probably find somewhere else to sleep, just for one night, dontcha think?” I thought that was pretty cute. And then later she said, “Well, I guess I probably ought to get up and fix them something… Do you think they like meatloaf?” (We had been talking about how good her meatloaf is, a little bit earlier.

I brought her locket necklace the next morning. It was one that she gave me several years ago – it has pictures of her and Lynn inside it. She didn’t feel comfortable wearing it once she and Doug were married, so she gave it to me to keep all these years. It’s one of my favorites, and one my kids all know is extra special to me. While we were visiting, I pulled it out to show her. She didn’t seem to recognize it at first, so I opened it for her and showed her the pictures. I told her they were of her and Lynn. “Oh yes, dear Lynn. Oh we was so young and in love here. Look at us! How sweet.” A few minutes later, my dad came in. His back was to her, and he was talking to a nurse. She asked, “who’s that?” I told her it was Dennis. She then asked, “Oh, well, where’s Lynn? I haven’t seen him in such a long, long time.” Then, looking at my dad, she said, “They just look so much alike.”

Later, when I was talking to my dad, he said she hasn’t mentioned anything at all about Lynn for a very long time. I don’t know if it was because I brought the locket to show her, or if she was just getting close to the end and things were becoming a little more clear for her? I like to think it was a little of both.

I got to see Grandma four or five different times throughout the day on Tuesday. She wasn’t feeling really well and needed to rest. But I knew she wouldn’t want to rest if I just stayed there the whole time. Plus, others were coming to see her and needed some time with her. So I would visit for awhile, along with my mom, and then we’d leave for a bit. Each time I came back in her room again, she was sooo excited to see me. She would sit up a little and say, “Well, Kamber! Is that you?!” – like she hadn’t expected me and hadn’t just seen me a little while before. It was really sweet to see her excitement.

My mom brought in a sweet letter of memories that she had written to Grandma for her 90^th birthday, five years ago. She reread most of it to Eva, stopping at different points to reminisce about different things mentioned in the letter – canning and making jam out of the raspberries, camping trips and places Grandma always loved to visit, etc. Each time, Grandma would say, “Oh yes, I remember that, wasn’t that neat?” Or, “Oh wow! I don’t hardly remember that.”

At lunchtime, Grandma was feeling pretty weak and they had restricted her to complete bedrest, to help keep her oxygen levels steady… Apparently sometime Monday evening, before I had arrived, a nurse was helping her to the bathroom and Eva was really struggling to get enough oxygen. The nurse – I think her name was Megan— had helped put her oxygen mask right in her mouth and had her breathe some deep breaths to get her levels to come back up. Megan said it was very alarming and that she didn’t think Eva had the strength for another bathroom trip. As a result, they were keeping her on bedrest, and monitoring her oxygen levels very often. At one point when I came in, it looked like she was trying to get up. I gently helped her back into the bed and covered her up. I told her, “I think the nurses want you to stay in the bed for right now, Grandma.” She asked, kind of belligerently, “how come??” I said, “Well, they said it makes your oxygen levels come down too low, so you don’t get enough breath – since you’re not feeling very well.” Then she nodded and laid back down, like she understood what I was saying and why it was important. She kept lifting up her shirt to show me a spot on her ribs that was sore. I think she thought they were keeping her down because of that pain she was feeling in her ribs. I don’t think she knew she was close to the end, or, at least, she didn’t seem to remember for long if she did have thoughts about it.

Anyway, so for lunch, the nurses brought in some cream of mushroom soup with a big bowl and a big spoon. My dad suggested maybe I could help feed it to her, to save her strength, since I was sitting beside her on her bed. I imagine this is something he has been doing for her from time to time lately. It felt like such a treat to be helping her in this way. She took lots of good bites and told me that spoon was too big. It was! My mom and I were planning to bring her a better, smaller spoon the next day. She ate most of it, and talked to me about each of my kids, asking their names and what they’re doing nowadays. I showed her some pictures on my phone, then asked her some questions about her own sisters and memories she had with them. We talked about how she and Edna used to tap dance, and how she loved rollerskating so much. I teased her and told her we wouldn’t be bringing in any rollerskates, in case she got tempted to go skating around the Gables. She laughed, then shook her head, no, she wouldn’t be skating today!

In the evening, again, I got to help feed her some dinner. It was a kind of creamy chicken enchilada stuff with some rice and a yogurt fruit salad. She ate lots of bites of the chicken and rice, and all of the fruit. She really enjoyed the fruit and was happy to get every last bite! Doug’s granddaughter, Jennifer, came in with some flowers for Eva just as I finished helping her with dinner. So I left with my mom for a bit so Jennifer and her husband could have a visit. Mom and I went for a drive out to Thomas, to see and talk about places where my mom grew up and the whole area around there. That was nice to reminisce with her for awhile, too.

On our way back into town, we called my dad and told him to meet us back at the Gables, and then we’d go grab some dinner after another visit with Grandma. Again, as I came through the door to see her, Grandma sat up and said, “Well, Kamber! Is that you, honey?!” It was so sweet to hear her excitement. And yet, she also sounded so very tired and worn. I sat on the edge of her bed again and held her hands. They were so warm and soft. I told her, and she told me that my hands were too cold! Then she rubbed them, to warm them up. I got some Vaseline for her lips, because she said they were just dry and sore and uncomfortable. Both my parents sat over on Doug’s bed, and he was in his wheelchair at the foot of the bed watching television. I would have liked to include him more in our conversations, but he has such a hard time hearing these days… We had to repeat things a lot with him, and he mainly just said for us to go ahead and just visit with Eva as long and as much as we liked.

Grandma was looking so tired, I knew we shouldn’t stay long with her, so she could get some rest. I told her we were going to go get a quick bit of dinner and let her get some sleep for awhile. She said, “don’t they have something here you could eat maybe? I think I’d just prefer to visit with you.” Part of me wishes I would have just stayed with her one more hour right then. But I could also see how very tired she looked… She’d had a long, busy day with lots of nurses checking on her, and lots of visitors checking in. I told her we’d come back in the morning and visit some more with her, and she agreed that sounded nice. I had given her lots of drinks of water throughout the day. I offered her one more drink from her big cup, and she kind of swallowed it the wrong way and started to choke. It was so scary, because she just couldn’t seem to catch her breath. Her face turned so dark red, and she leaned forward into my arms. I was patting her back, trying to get that water to come up. It took several seconds, but she finally was able to cough it up and breathe again. We all four just sat there for a few minutes, realizing how difficult it was for her to get enough air. My dad took her oxygen level again and it was low… we waited until it was back up into the 70s. I told her again that we were just going to let her rest for a bit and come back in the morning. She nodded ok and laid back in her bed.

I leaned in to hug her, and all my emotions just started pouring out. I started sobbing into her shoulder, just realizing how much I love her and how much I will miss her. It was just a short moment, but I’ll never forget that feeling of her soft, warm arms around me, offering me comfort and support. She felt so warm and squishy – just like my grandma for all those many years. “Oh, honey,” she said, “don’t you cry.” I quickly wiped my tears and pulled back from her and said, “Oh, I’m just so sad that you have to be so sick like this.”

“Well, I’ll get better,” she reassured me. “Don’t you worry.”

I nodded and pulled away to leave. But what I wanted to say, and kept inside, was so much more… “Oh my dear Grandma, how much I love you! You have meant so very much to me all these years. I am afraid our time is almost over here together for now. I’m afraid you’re going to leave me soon. And I’m most afraid that I won’t be here to really say goodbye to you before you go! I’m going to miss you so much!! But I’m sooooo happy for you, too! I know you’ve been missing your Lynn and your Mama and Dad and your sisters, and Roger, and Dallas, and Wade, and so many others… missing them all for soooo long now. Your mind and heart are already with them, I can tell. I want you to go, but I don’t know how to say goodbye to you. I’m afraid you’ll suffer and hurt a lot as you go. I’m afraid you will be scared to let go. Mostly, I guess I’m just afraid to let you go, because I love you so much. You’ve let me be your little girl my whole entire life. Even now, you’re the one comforting me, telling me not to cry. That’s just like you, though, isn’t it? My dear, wonderful, beautiful Grandma.”

Those were the thoughts in my heart as I gave her that last sobbing hug that night. I was already planning to come back home the next day because I knew Brian needed me that evening for a big Scout court of honor he had planned at our house. Life just moves on despite grief and its cares and concerns, doesn’t it? Well, I was feeling like I would have a hard goodbye to say that next morning, knowing she probably only had a few more weeks to be with us – and that I would most likely be across the state at home in Nampa when the call came saying she was gone.

My parents both hugged her and stood to leave. And I gave her one last sweet hug with no tears and just told her to rest and I’d see her in the morning. “That’s a good plan,” she said. Then I hugged Doug and started to leave the room. “Goodbye, Grandma,” I called, with my hand on the doorknob.

“Oh, are you leaving then?” she asked.

“Yeah, I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Oh, okay then… Is Dennis with you?”

“Yes, he’s leaving with me.”

“Well, tell him goodbye too… And Karen, is she with you?”

“Yes, she’s with us.”

“Well, tell her goodbye for me, too.”

“Ok, I will. Goodnight, Grandma.”

“Goodnight. Love you!”

“I love you, too,” I said.

“Love you a bunch,” she said.

“Me, too,” I said.

“You leaving now, then?” she asked.

“Yes, I’m going,” I said. By this time I’d slipped through the doorway and was starting to close it.

“Well, OK, then. Love you!”

“I love you, too, Grandma,” I said again. And then I closed the door while she was still talking, as her usual way of getting the very last word. I loved that, and smiled to myself as I hurried to catch up with my mom and dad. Typical Grandma, having the last word!

Of course, looking back now, I wish I had told my parents to go on without me to dinner, and that I could have stayed with her and listened to all her very last thoughts until she was ready to sleep that night. But there’s no use in those kinds of regrets. My last exchange with her was sweet and typical, as it should have been.

We went to dinner at Tommy Vaughns and split a couple of appetizers and had a delicious wedge salad each. It was nice, and we talked a lot about Grandma and how nice it had been to be with her that whole day. We went home tired, and quickly said goodnight to each other and headed to bed. In my prayers that night, I asked Heavenly Father to please take her home, if she was ready. And help us to be able to bear it. And help my dad to be able to let her go. This had been my prayer many times over the past months as her health and mind had been declining. But it felt even more poignant, having just been with her throughout the day so much.

I went right to sleep into a deep sleep. At 2:30 a.m., my mom knocked on my bedroom door, then opened it and said, "Kamber? We just got the call from the Gables... Grandma Eva just passed away. She’s gone.”

It took me a few minutes to fully wake up and process what she had said. I couldn’t believe it! And yet, at the same time, a part of me felt that it was supposed to happen this way. I immediately felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude that I got to be there, and not hundreds of miles away, just hearing about it over the phone. It had been my unspoken wish and desire to get to be there. And I was blessed with that sacred privilege.

The tears came as I thought about all of these things. I laid in bed and quietly cried for a few minutes, not knowing what I should do. My dad came in and said he was headed to the Gables to be with her, and I could come in a few minutes with Mom if I wanted to. So I got up and put on some clothes to go in. But I didn’t want to go, not really. I was afraid of what I might feel there. I think I can count on one hand how many dead people I have seen – all at funerals. I was afraid to see her. But I went, and I’m so glad I did.

It was hard, and sad, but also reverent and beautiful, to be with her and give her last hugs and kisses while she was still so warm and soft. She was wearing the same shirt she had been in earlier in the day – a pink polo shirt. She was on her side, and looked peaceful and gentle. And gone. I cried with Doug and let him go on and on in his grief, like he needed right then.  Lance came after awhile, and we all waited for the hospice nurse to come write a death record. Then the funeral home guy came to dress her and take her. He helped the nurses dress her in some new pink striped pajamas that my mom and I had just bought for her earlier that day. We hugged her goodbye one last time, then they took her.

It was hard to go back to sleep when we got back to my parents’ house, and harder to wake up a couple of hours later that morning. But I knew I had to go back home that day, so I had to get moving. I went to the Gables once more, to hug Doug and talk with him for a few minutes again, and Melissa came with me. Then I stopped at the funeral home where my parents were meeting with one of the directors. I stayed with them and helped pick out a pretty pink casket for her. We looked all around at several different caskets – they are really so beautiful. Finally, my mom and I settled on a simple, mauvy pink one, with light pink interior. My dad stood quietly by, letting the two of us choose. Once we were settled, he got a sweet smile on his face and said, “that’s the same one I picked out for her, too.” I thought that was special, and thoughtful of him to let us pick. I hugged them both goodbye and then I headed home.

That ride home was something beautiful and kind of indescribable to me. I had a long, weepy prayer to Heavenly Father that went something like this: “Oh, Heavenly Father, I’m soooo very grateful I got to be here with her. I feel like it was kind of a tiny miracle that I got to be part of these last moments with my dear sweet grandma. I love her so much. I am soooo blessed to have had her with me all these years, through all my life. She’s so wonderful, so precious to me and to everyone. Thank you, Heavenly Father. Thank you for my sweet husband who encouraged me to come be here. Thank you for my parents, for their tender care for Grandma all these past years. She’s just been such a lovely and wonderful person in all our lives and we will all miss her so much. But oh! I’m sooo glad she’s coming home now! She has missed so many people for so long!! I’m so happy she gets to go be with them all now – her Lynn, and Roger, and all her sweet sisters… and her mama, she sooo wanted to be with her mama! She was just so wonderful and patient and good all these years. Thank you for taking her home, Heavenly Father. Thank you for letting me be here to say my last goodbyes to her. I fed her her last meal. I had last words and last hugs and such sweet, wonderful last memories with her. I feel so very, very blessed for these things. I’m just extremely grateful that I got to be part of these last days. So thankful…” And on I prayed and wept and prayed some more for nearly an hour as I drove along toward home.

I stopped in Rupert and visited for a few minutes with Kerri. I still can’t believe she is moving there! I was able to share with her some of the sweet, hard details of my trip and saying goodbye. It was a nice visit, and she gave me cookies and a sandwich, so I didn’t have to stop again, and made it home in time to help Brian with the Scout Court of Honor at our house that night.

Thursday was hard. I wanted to be back with my mom and Melissa – helping to dress her and get her ready for the funeral. But I also didn’t feel very well, and was grateful to be at home and able to rest. I wanted to carry on with my every-day stuff, but I found I was weepy off and on without warning – cryiarrhea, my brothers called it when we were mourning Wade: the tears come and go with no warning or reason. I went to pick up Spencer for an appointment with his counselor after school, and found I didn’t have the strength or energy to do it. I called Brian, and he came and took over, taking Spencer to his appointment, then also taking the kids to tumbling class, so I could just rest for a bit.

By Friday, my parents had outlined all the details for the funeral program, and had asked me to give the life sketch, and to play a piano medley of hymns. It was a honor to speak at her funeral, and a blessing to prepare her life sketch. In the process, I feel like I gained an even greater appreciation for the amazing, remarkable, loving woman she is! I’ve felt such a sweet closeness to her since starting to compile my thoughts about her. It has been beautiful and so comforting!

Over the weekend, we went to Mark and Dalana’s to be with their family. On the way, and while we were there, I spent a lot of time writing memories and different stories she had told me, stringing them together with facts and details about her life. I felt gentle heavenly nudges to check certain facts again, or to include some additional details here and there. My mom found a book of “interesting facts about Grandma” that had some of Grandma’s own writings and memories. It was really helpful in giving me some interesting tidbits of her favorites, and some important dates and other info as well. I also loved reading some of her journal pages, and incorporated some of her thoughts and insights into my remarks, without getting it too personal.

We had a viewing planned for Monday evening, before the funeral on Tuesday. Brian and I went to her house and to her apartment at the Gables, to gather some pictures and items that sort of represented some of the moments and memories of her sweet life – an afghan she had crocheted, some needlepoint she had done, a beadwork table trivet, etc. I was finishing arranging a display in the entry to the room where her casket was, when Brian told me I should go check on Spencer. We had all the kids with us, of course. And Spencer had gone up to the casket without either of us. I first went to the casket, and saw my beautiful, dear Grandma Eva. She looked so peaceful and lovely, in a soft, pink dress that she had worn many times these past years. I held her hand for a minute and gave her a hug. Oh how much I’ll miss her, my dear friend!

After that, I went to where Spencer was sitting, on a little couch near the casket, with tears just streaming down his face. It almost broke my heart. He was so sad, so affected at seeing her in the casket. I hugged him and tried to console him for several minutes. He was just having a rough time. The other kids cried a little bit, then started talking to each other and eventually went outside together. Not Spencer – he sat on that little couch near the casket the entire evening. He finally fell asleep there for a few minutes; I think the emotion just wore him out, my sweet Buddy.

It was good to visit with family and friends who came to the viewing, and to the funeral the next day. But the whole time, I just had such a strong feeling that the REAL gathering was happening on the other side of the veil, probably not far from us, but so much sweeter and more joyful!

The service was really beautiful, and a wonderful tribute to her wonderful, beautiful life. I loved listening to all my family speak about her and their memories. And, I really loved getting share her life sketch. I was really worried about it being too long, and tried to cut it down several different times. But every time I tried to edit something out, I just didn’t feel right about it. Plus, I would ask my parents, “hey, do you think we could leave xxx detail out?” and they would both answer, “NO! you HAVE to include THAT part!” ha! So… it was long! But then, so was her life! And, I think it was also interesting. Because, of course, so was her life.

My dad conducted the funeral, and each of my brothers, and Ladd and Shawn, gave special tributes and memories of Grandma. My mom and Jen gave quick tributes as well. It was a very nice service. I kept looking at Aunt Noi as I spoke. She looked so happy and eager to be there and hear every detail… she was a very attentive audience, and Ladd and Shawn were, too. They even called out little extra details at some parts, which was fun.

After the service, I played Man From Snowy River as everyone exited. That was her wish. I hope she heard it. I felt like angels helped me play that whole day – the medley of hymns was How Great Thou Art, In the Garden, The Old Rugged Cross, and Somewhere Over the Rainbow (which isn’t really a hymn, but was one of her favorites that she wanted me to include.)

We got to ride in limousines over to the cemetery, for a very short graveside service. As it ended, my mom told all the grandkids they could each choose a flower from the enormous spray that was on top of the casket. There were giant pink roses, and huge hollyhocks that the kids took and carried with them in the limo back to the funeral home and on to the dinner. We had ham and potatoes at the church, which was really nice. Lots of ham! Samantha was tired of ham at the end of the day, since we’d had ham sandwiches the day before, and for dinner. I told her she didn’t need to take any at the funeral lunch, and she didn’t.

Then we went back to my parents’ house to change before heading home. My mom had each of us take one of the huge, gorgeous bouquets home with us, which was nice. I ended up with an orchid, which Samantha has in her room, still. And also I got a big bouquet of white roses. They lasted for over a week, and the giant buds my kids had saved also lasted for so long! It was a sweet way to end things and have that lingering beauty.

One of the sweetest happenings was with Spencer – I already mentioned how hard he was taking things at the viewing. Well, he had a hard time at the funeral as well, and cried a lot before the service, and as they closed the casket. Throughout the day he just looked so sad and worn down. That night, after we got home, I was talking to him before he went to sleep, and he looked so sad. I asked him, “do you want to talk about it?”

“Talk about what?” he asked.

“About how you’re feeling, about what you’re thinking?”

“Mom! I’m just so sad! I just miss her and I just feel so sad. That’s all!” Then more tears, more heartache and a big long crying hug. I said a prayer with him that night, and talked to him about how death is part of the plan, and that these goodbyes are sooo hard, but there’s a time for each of us. He calmed down and finally went to sleep. I said more prayers for him before I slept that night, too.

The next day, after school, I was driving with Spencer to a doctor’s appointment. Since I had him alone, I asked, “hey, Buddy, are you feeling ok today? –about Grandma.”

He told me he was feeling a lot better. Then, with some help from me asking lots of lead-on questions, he told me this: “Mom, I had a dream about Grandma last night. She was wearing that pretty pink dress, and she was smiling. She came to me and she gave me a big hug. She told me not to worry about her, that she’s ok and she’s really happy.”

Wow. As he told me, the Spirit was so strong and so special. It was so neat to hear him say this, and see the change in him. He was truly at peace about things, after having been so upset throughout the whole funeral time. And, ever since then, any time we’ve talked about her, he has been fine and has felt at peace with her death. What a beautiful answer to prayers. And a beautiful reassurance for him, and for me and our family, as well! We have been so blessed to have our precious Grandma Eva for all these years. And now, she’ll be there for us, when it’s our time to go. I hope she’s enjoying heaven!