Denny is quickly slipping away. He has been sleeping around the clock. This morning we had to give him his pills with Jello because he couldn't swallow them with water. This brilliant idea was from BJ, my neighbor. By this afternoon, he couldn't swallow even with the jello.
Sandy, our hospice nurse, came out to take a look at him. She said he has declined very quickly and has ordered a morphine pain pump so that I don't have to worry about getting the pills down. She also said that only God knows when it is Denny's time but based on her years of experience, she feels we will be lucky to have him through the weekend. She said if the pain pump can keep him more comfortable he may have a few days longer. Both the hospice nurse and the hospice Doctor feel the tumor is growing bigger at the base of his skull. He is having small seizures that cause him to jerk and twitch. This is caused from the tumor growing toward his brain. I have liquid medicines that I will be giving him every 2 hours throughout the night.
Dana and Daniel will not be coming home this weekend. TheWoodruff4 have handled this cancer fight for 10 years. The kids were able to spend time one-on-one with their Dad at the hospital to say the things that were in their hearts. Denny was given the same opportunity. Going to Auburn was his Swan Song. He was able to say good-bye to his children on his own terms in his own way. They want to remember him that way. I know there are others out there that do not agree with how we have decided to handle this. We ask that you not criticize our family's decisions but respect our desire to say "good-bye" in a manner that works for the 4 of us.
I spent most of this afternoon sitting with Denny in our bedroom. The house is clean and quiet. Our dog is sleeping on our bed. I hear the cadence of the clock: tick tock tick tock in soothing repetition. Denny's face is peaceful. The window was slightly open so that he could hear the warble of the bird song. What a strangely beautiful experience his end-of-life journey is. We are covered with tranquility like a blanket in our little world; just he and I. Let there be peace on earth for my superman...I love you, Denny...+1
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Brooke and I are praying for you guys and that Denny has a peaceful ascension to heaven to see his family. He is an amazing man and I am so lucky to have gotten to be near him. Brooke and I were talking this evening about Uncle Denny and her fond memories of the farm and Denny taking her on the 4-wheeler and just always having fun. I also always know the happiness Brooke got from just the simple phone calls from Uncle Denny that were always positive and made her feel better. She just felt important that he was always wanting to know what she was doing. Seeing Brooke's reaction has made me want to pay it forward and I know I can thank Denny for that. Thank you, Uncle Denny. We are thinking and you praying for you. --Jason and Brooke, -John 3:16, John 11:25
ReplyDelete“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
ReplyDeleteYou have spent years by Denny's side, enjoying, sharing, attending to, suffering with, comforting, and loving him. May God bring peace to your soul and aching heart at this time!
"As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well spent brings happy death." ~ Leonardo Da Vinci
Love and prayers, Aunt Candy