Another Death In The Family...

I saw the incoming call from my brother earlier this week. He and I have corresponded several times in the past couple of weeks since my sister passed away. He stayed at the hospital while they tried to save her life and he was there when they turned off the machines.

I didn't know why he called earlier this week.

Turns out, he called to report another family member was going to pass away, possibly soon.

I'm getting sick of those calls. It was the fourth such call we've received in the past six months.

My cousin passed away in July of last year. She was sixty-three. Then my brother-in-law passed away in November. He was sixty-four. My sister died the last week of the year at the age of fifty-three, and my cousin's husband passed away Thursday. He was fifty-nine.

I know I'm not alone--with so many people passing away many families have experienced multiple deaths. We as a society seem to be mourning all the time.

Steve, my cousin's husband who passed away this week, is an amazing man. He earned his doctorate and used his skills as an educator and administrator. I've always admired his dedication to making the world a better place, to help the younger generation understand this crazy world. He had been sick for years--the cancer diagnosis hung over the family like a dark cloud. But I never heard a a negative remark from him. He faced his final days the way he lived his life. I never heard one complaint.

I am at the age, and we live in a time when any of us can go at any time. It's always been this way, but with so many deaths in such a short period of time, it hits home. I hope this makes me appreciate life more, appreciate those around me more because it's more evident than ever before...you never know.

I love my brother, but I could do with fewer phone calls of bad news in the future.