DAD REMEMBRANCE DAYS
This post is part of a series of stories about my Dad I am posing in what I call “Dad Remembrance Days” which is annually the days between his Birthday on April 26 to his Deathday on May 4 and his Funeralday on May 8. I will be posting stories and pictures, perhaps every day or not depending on my time and energy, about our time together and his life. If you have any questions or want me to address specific topics, please let me know in the comments.
Thank ye,
#jtg
As recently as a few days before Dad’s death, it appeared that he might yet pull out of his then most recent decline. He had been eating well and had been gaining strength, and while still weak, was responding well to physical therapy and walking with help up and down the halls of the rehab facility.
As I said in the last episode of this series, I left Dad the afternoon before thinking he was doing well, if he was a little tired. In retrospect, he was showing some signs that perhaps he might not recover, but there was nothing clearly showing he was about to die.
That morning, I got a call from the rehab facility saying that Dad had been moved to the Hospital. I went back to the hospital and that day is a blur to me now, although I’m pretty sure I made a video recorded diary or two of that day, which I will review when I write the full story of this time.
The next evening, Dad was in the hospital. As I often did, I spent much of the day with him, and that evening I brought my tablet with me to his room and we watched a video. The video we watched was RAGING BULL, which Dad had never seen although he had heard about it. It’s supposed to be a semi-true story about a boxer named Jake LaMotta, although I’ve heard that the story, based on a book LaMotta wrote, paints himself in a much better light than he actually was in real life.
Unfortunately, Dad did not have the energy to watch the whole movie, so I bookmarked the end of the movie and intended to play the rest of the movie when Dad was feeling better, which he never was.
His doctors told me that Dad’s condition was quite grave and they didn’t think he had much time left. I asked that they do whatever they could to do some last chances to get him past this to recovery. I had been told several times over the previous 15 years that Dad was about to die, and I refused to give up on Dad, and so far, Dad had always pulled through. I had some reason to hope and believe Dad might pull another Lazrous if only he could get past this crisis.
I had a long joke with Dad that we were going to celebrate his 100th birthday together.
I called my siblings and my niece Stephanie and told them to get to Salinas asap, hoping that Dad would make it until they got there.
Next, I will discuss how Dad met his great-granddaughter Hero Anne McAtee for the first and last time.
If you have been reading all these diaries, thank you.
#jtg
PRIOR DIARIES IN THE DAD REMEMBRANCE SERIES
Dad’s 94th Birthday
Dad and Space Shuttle ENDEAVOUR
Dad’s Final Decline Began
Coming soon:
Dad meets his Great Granddaughter for the first and last time
Dad’s Last Day
RIP Dad :: 1927-2015 (funeral)