This evening, I received the call that I’ve been expecting for nearly 30 years informing me that my father had passed away peacefully at home earlier this afternoon after a very long and agonising struggle with more diseases than I care to remember or name.
Just this morning, I had received an EMAIL from Carol letting me know that he was not feeling like his usual self which in itself is remarkable for what he had to do just to get from his bed to the kitchen and washroom on a daily basis. I was planning on replying that he hadn’t told me anything about his health and that I was far more likely to get official notification that he was gone before I’d get the straight story out of him about how he was doing. As it turned out, that was rather prophetic when the Port Orange Police Department called me with the news round 1900 or so.
Apparently it was a rather sudden event as he had called Carol at 1300 letting her know there were fresh oranges waiting for her on the sofa (ironically, I was going to ring him this evening thanking him for the bushel that arrived on my doorstep this weekend but unfortunately he was already gone round 1700 when he was discovered by Carol).
I’ll admit that there is a bit of sadness knowing that he has passed away but I truly think it was a blessing and merciful and exactly the way he would have wanted it to happen…at home rather than stuck in some medical facility. It’s almost like a missing tooth for me…you keep poking your tongue in the missing space even though you know it isn’t there…it’s much the same for me accepting that what I’ve dreamt about all these years is finally real.
Fortunately, he had already made all of the arrangements so it’s really a matter of executing the standing orders I’ve had on standby all of these years. He served his country honourably and well and his ashes will be interred in the place that he has earned at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington DC in the coming months (right now, it takes about 3-6 months).
Anyone who knew him well knew he wasn’t much for a big ceremony or much fuss about him so in lieu of flowers, may I suggest donations in his name to The Fisher House which provides free lodging for the families of members of the military who are in hospital. I made a donation in his name to Fisher House on Veteran’s Day and he seemed exceptionally pleased by the choice.