Dad's Death

By Kay Heitsch

As my mom's death in my first story was a complete shock, my dad's death was prolonged.

Dad's health began to fail. He had lived an unhealthy lifestyle. He smoked and drank a lot. He ate unhealthily and was overweight. Now this lifestyle had caught up with him.

Dad found himself on oxygen daily. A doctor thought he must have cancer and suggested he go on chemo. Although there was no direct evidence that he had cancer.

I lived many hours away from Dad, so I rarely saw him. But when I did, I could see the horrible effects his poor health and chemo were having on him.

Dad battled his health issues for around 5 years. He could live at home with the help of his wonderful friends. He was able to drive and would drive himself to the hospital.

I became pregnant with Brandon during one of his last years of life. I would drive nine hours to visit and help him, knowing every rest area along the way.

I was home on February 6th when I received the call that my dad was in a coma in the hospital. I was told they would call when he passed on. Every time the phone rang, I wondered if Dad had died. I felt sick to my stomach.

All of a sudden, Brandon let out a whaling cry. The phone rang, and Dad had died.

My feelings were sadness and relief. Later, I felt like an orphan. I didn't have siblings, so now I was alone and had to accept that part of my life was over.