Describe the last difficult “goodbye” you said.
I have lost many loved ones to death. My parents, a brother, and my grandparents. The list seems endless. They each affected me in different ways. My grief always played out in a painful way, but I managed. However, one persons death rocked my world. Her name was Pat. She was a precious lady in one of the churches my husband pastored. She was full of life and energy. She always saw the very best in everything. She loved her family and protected them like a momma bear. She loved me too! She greeted me with a hug; not a wimpy, but a bear hug. She gave me sweet gifts. She stood up for me when she felt other were attacking me. She was my cheerleader. I knew her heart was sick, but felt she was taking care of it the best she could. After one hospital stay, I could tell there was a change in her energy and appearance. Then she missed several services; which was not like her. So, I went to her house. She was in her pjs. She looked very thin. I knew instantly that my Pat had cancer. I asked her point blank what was wrong. She confirmed my thought. She said she tried to pick up the phone to tell me, but she didn’t want to make me sad. We spend a few hours talking and crying. She died a week later. That’s been 16 years ago and it still brings a tear to my eye. I miss my cheerleader. I will see you again some day. I understand that loss is a part of the cycle of life, but it isn’t a part that I like very much. So, it is imperative that you let the ones you love know how much you care – one day they will just be a memory.
LaDonna Fridenmaker~Writer 
I’m so sorry for your losses, LaDonna, and especially the loss of your dear friend, Pat. Cancer is such a cruel disease. You must miss her dreadfully. It’s so hard to lose loved ones, especially if it’s before their time.
I lost my Mum six years ago, and it still feels like yesterday. I’m glad you pointed out how important it is to tell our loved ones we care. I had a conversation with my adult daughter, and we’ve agreed to get together soon and share all our thoughts about how we feel and to give my daughter a chance to ask any questions she may have. I know, now that I don’t have my Mum, I have so many unanswered questions that I’ll never have answers for, and I don’t want my daughter to feel the same when I’m no longer here (I’m 65 by the way so, hopefully, have a good while to go yet). But who knows. No one knows what their future holds. We have to be grateful for every day that we have.
Take care of yourself. X
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ellie,
I’m glad you talked to your daughter. It’s so important to keep those relationships open and fresh.
I do have a question for you. Do you know how to get something published without costing big money? Have you published?
do you have any advice? Please let me know!
Thank you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi LaDonna, thank you very much for replying to my comment.
Regarding publishing a book; I’m not expert by any means, and have only learned from what my other readers have said previously when I’ve asked the same question. Some people say that publishers won’t accept work that has been previously published even on blogs. However, there is always the self-publishing route, which I’m looking into at the moment, although it doesn’t look easy. Amazon have that option under the title of KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) but I’ve not been able to make head nor tail of it so far. Also, if you can find a publisher who will take pre-published work, it will cost you. The cheapest publisher I have found is a mental health publisher called Chipmunka. The only down side of them is that you’re restricted to layout, no internal page images but just a cover image of your choice. It costs between £600 – £3,000. It depends whether you’re willing to pay that for a slightly plain book. If I find out anymore, I will come back and let you know. Good luck with looking into this. It seems very complicated, although I have had a book published with Chipmunka when they were much cheaper and it was many years ago under a pseudonym. Good luck. X 😊
LikeLike