I hope you do not wait - Of Hospice, ALS and all things end of life

So today I stumbled upon this write up of a blog I follow of a lady who is living with ALS...You can follow her ALS journey here.....Below is a picture of her with her super supportive husband...

I’m glad I didn’t wait to make heartfelt toasts at meals.

I’m glad I didn’t wait to seize the moment with family and friends. Some of the best moments of my life happened with little time to plan.

I’m glad I didn’t wait to invite people to dinner that I didn’t know very well but wanted to know better.

I’m glad I didn’t wait to save and to be generous.

I’m glad I didn’t wait to be that annoying person with the camera.

I’m glad I didn’t wait to forgive.

I hope you don’t wait.

So yesterday at work I admitted a lady at work for hospice care. Basically she had come to slowly ease her transition into end of life...We literally sat on a table with her two daughters - who I remember had the most perfect teeth and the hospice nurse.So her daughters told us all about her - her most favorite things that she loved doing what she liked to be called and basically the hospice nurses continued to tell the daughters how we would continue to monitor her and administer Levsin - a medication given towards the end as her secretions got worse which the hopsice nurse I quote said, "though that will come much later," Today as I was home checking my work email - which after today I will stay away from - I see the woman I admitted passed away overnight...I was filled with shock, disbelief, like what the heck happened?? based on her admitting diagnosis I think two things may have happened either she had a brain herniation or an internal bleed or maybe just maybe her time had come early - for we know not the time or the hour..Either way I immediately begun thinking of her daughters - I remember them leaving last night saying, " Goodnight mum see you tommorrow." Did they have closure?Had they said all the Goodbyes and I love yous??Elizabeth Kubler Ross describes the stages of grief as going from Denial to Anger to Bargaining to Depression and finally Acceptance...I do not know at what stage her daughters were however I do hope that they look back at mums life with a sense of fulfilment...Kind of like she has run the race and finished the race as quoted from Timothy.

I know of another lady in Nairobi who was recently diagnosed stage four breast cancer that has mestastasized to her lungs. It has been heart wrenching to hear of the pain that she is enduring as Hospice care is not as specialized as it is in the Western world...Most of the care that is afforded in hospitals is really acute in nature so end of life care in the developing world leaves the healthcare staff with an  ok what are we supposed to do here???Anyway the long of the short in the last few weeks/ months I have realized how in a blink of an eye the equation of this thing called life can change - so it does not hurt to be the wind beneath someone elses wings, to be the the light to a dark world, to be the hope to another human , not be afraid to say I love you - Mother Teresa said it best - love until it hurts -  because tommorrow is not promised all we have are the moments that make up today...