Coleman2: Together again!

This is my mother and father-in-law...... Known in our family as grandma Jean/grandpa Jerry. Last December Jean went home to be with Jesus. Yesterday Jerry joined her there. I know that they are so happy to be together again. I can almost hear Jean ask him "Why did it take you so long?"

Friday evening I stopped by the nursing home to see Jerry. He had fell earlier in the week and they had him confined to his bed. He had been sitting up the day before or so and couldn't keep his balance therefore the confine him to his bed. He was very unhappy that he was not allowed to sit on the edge of the bed. When ask how he felt---he declared HORRIBLE! No per say pain anywhere, but just plain felt awful. They were giving him breathing treatments, but he would take the mask off.....So that evening when he declared the mask had to come off I did the breathing treatment like Kim did on Kenley.....waved it in front of his nose so that he was getting the meds when he was breathing.

Saturday morning I went to soccer games then stopped at the nursing home to see him. Bud had left on Friday morning EARLY for Virginia to pick up a car therefore he was not at home at this time. When I stopped on Saturday morning I saw that his breathing was really choppy and he was not opening his eyes to visit with me. Muttering about wanting to sit up and he needed to sit up. Reaching his hand up as tho he was reaching for someone. (I honestly believe he saw angels and possibly saw Grandma and was reaching for her). Friday night he kept saying I gotta have help...HELP. Yet there was nothing I could actually do for him.

I left on other errands that I needed to run and told him I would check back with him later that night.

Mid afternoon while I was helping a friend of mine with her new computer, getting it all set up. Bud called me on the phone stating they called and said they thought he was going to leave us and I should definitely make sure I stopped by the nursing home that evening again since he was still in Indiana and was stopping for the night... He was exhausted after driving 850+ miles on Friday.

I arrived at the nursing home around 5 p.m. Bud's sister and boyfriend were there, but they didn't stay long..... Once again they had me do the breathing treatment, I sat on the back edge of his bed. He was restless and kept wanting to get up. So I would hold his hand just to keep him calm. At one point I even sang some songs to him, including Silent Night which seemed to calm him some too.

When I left around 7:30 I leaned way up close to him and told him, "Grandpa - I love you". After having sat there and he not saying a word, just trying to get out of bed and reaching upward, he said, "I love you too"

The sound of his voice was not his normal voice. It hit me like a bang between my eyes, It was the same sounding voice that I remembered my sister had the day before she passed from this earth when she spoke on the phone with her granddaughter who was in Florida at that time. As tho he was in a big tunnel. I had sat there praying, "God, please just take him home, he would not want to live like this".

I went home with a heavy heart, Wishing I could stay with him all night and at least have family close that he would know that he was loved. But also knew that if I sat with him all night I would only be asking for trouble with my own health. Therefore I went home.

Sunday morning I got up and ate breakfast and dressed for church. Bud was supposed to be back in town by 11 or so and I was to meet him at the nursing home then.

Sitting in church my phone buzzed. I took it out and the text was from Bud, all it said was "Call me" I got up ask Vicki who sat between me and the isle to let me out I had to go. As I went out the door away from the congregation I called Bud and he told me that "Grandpa is now with Grandma in Heaven, they are together again." His sister would need to go sign papers, but he didn't think it was necessary I go over, but for my own peace of mind, I needed to go see him once more to see that he was resting peacefully.

My friend, Janet who was late to church service was just coming in the door. Her father had just been transferred to the same nursing home. I told her to let Pastor Bob know so that he wouldn't go over that afternoon since I had spoke to him before service. One of the ushers was right there too. Later I find out that Max took a note up front and gave it to pastor Jerry so they could announce it in church and pray for us. I went to the nursing home, his room mate was in his half of the room visiting with his wife. They did not know that the reason the curtain was pulled like it was was because Mr. Sheppard had gone on to be with the Lord.

Later in the day the nurse told Bud that she saw that he was leaving this world and she stood and held his hand for 15 minutes so that he was not alone when the transition was made.

I was going to go back to Sunday School when I see Pastor Bob coming in. So we went back to the room, He quoted the 23rd Psalm and prayed with me.

While with me he got an additional page as he was on call for DMH.

When Pastor Bob came into the room with me, grandpa's roommates wife said "Oh, I know you, you did my mother's funeral" Bob knew who she was. When I told her that Pastor Bob had been at my church a long time, she looked at me and stated "Then you probably know my brother."

Who is your brother? and she told me it was Sam D....yep I know Sam and Becky, Sam had just had surgery this past week, but I had seen him in church before I left.... So it is a very small world. How come I didn't know that when this guy came in as grandpas room mate after his hip surgery?

So I guess I really am kinda rambling--- But I did not want to forget this week end and the precious moments that I shared with Grandpa before he left us. Think I will add a few fun photos of the past here of him and grandma too.

The first time Kim's Grandma got to meet Kenley. (A four generation photo)

The above two photos are of when Kim was small. Grandpa was the Elks Easter Bunny...note One photo she was not happy. He had to remove his Bunny head so that she quit screaming.

This one was taken at Grandma's birthday party. He was so happy to see his granddaughter and great granddaughter-Kenley. Even Grandma looked happy, but from that day on she had gone down hill.