F Is For...

"Family"

Two things before I start on this entry:

1) I am behind on my A-Z challenge. I realize this and I plan to write double or triple entries to catch up.

2) Thank you to everyone who has commented on my blog in the past few days. I promise I will be visiting all of yours! I have read and appreciate every comment.

Now as to the reason I am behind. (First let me say that if you want to read one of my funny entries, please visit the "Best of the Blog" -- I specifically recommend "How To Move With A Cat" if you are looking for a good laugh).

Unfortunately this is not a happy entry. My grandfather died last week and I had to fly to Chicago without warning. He had been sick for the past year, but when he passed away it was very swift and somewhat unexpected. I am thankful that he lived for much longer than the doctors predicted. When he was diagnosed with leukemia last spring, he was given an estimated 3 months to live. He lived for a year after his diagnosis, just shy of his 90th birthday. I am also thankful that the end came swiftly. He lived in his home up until the day before he died and had very little suffering. He died peacefully in his sleep in the middle of the night with my mother and her brother (my uncle) at his side. I only wish that I had been able to see or speak to him one more time before he passed away. I honestly thought he had more time - we were all planning to gather in Chicago to celebrate his 90th birthday. But suddenly he was in the hospital and the next night he wouldn't wake up. And that was that.

My family flew into Chicago on Thursday and stayed there through the weekend. The only -- ONLY -- positive side to this is that I got to see aunts and uncles and cousins and family friends I hadn't seen in years and years. It's sad that it seems there are only two things that really bring family together -- weddings and funerals. At least we can be thankful for the time we have together. And nothing like a death in the family makes you appreciate that more.

My grandfather's funeral was on a cold and rainy day (very appropriate) on Friday morning. The rest of the weekend was spent with relatives and friends dropping by to pay their respects. It was good to have everyone's support and exhausting at the same time. And by the end of the weekend I had answered the "what are you doing with your life" question so often I wished I had typed it out and pinned it to the front of my shirt.

If you've read this far, I appreciate it vastly. Everyone knows what it feels like to lose someone, but it is different to everyone and everyone handles it in their own way. Anyway, that is why I am behind on my entries which I plan to rectify this week. I'm not a Hallmark card kind of girl. I'm one of the most sensitive people you will ever meet but demonstrating that outwardly makes me incredibly uncomfortable and itchy in my own skin. I always go for the Far Side cartoon cards...not the sappy poetry.

But I hope all of you are happy and valuing the good things in your life. No matter how much negativity there is you can always find something (or someone) good. I wish I'd had one more chance to speak to my grandpa before he passed away. But I know he knew how much I loved him.