As many of you now know, my grandmother (gram) passed away last Friday evening, a mere two weeks after she spent Thanksgiving with the entire immediate family in Florida. I have been back and forth to the Tampa area three times in the last three weeks, once driving and twice flying.

Once I knew she was hospitalized with kidney failure, the decision to go back and spend time with her in the hospital was obvious, but I wasn’t sure what else I could do… it turns out that we were able to get her out of the hospital and into hospice care, so she was able to spend the last week of her life in familiar surroundings without tubes, blood tests and beeping machines.

She mentioned several times during the five days I sat with her both in the hospital and at Patrick Manor that she didn’t know what she would do without me. I can’t even describe how happy I am that I had this time with her and that I was able to honor her last wishes.

Gram, life just won’t be the same without you.

It goes without saying that we love and miss her so much already, but I know she is in a happier place and she wasn’t in any pain. I consider it a blessing to have had this wonderful woman in my life.