Illness, Injury and a Loss...

This morning, I was waiting to board the flight to Orlando and I got a text from my sister.  It said, "Can u call my cell?" Generally, a text like that means something is up.  A non-emergency would have generated a "call me when u can" type of text.  Honestly, I thought one of the children had done something, or one of my siblings was ill, or something.  So I called, and my sister told me that our Grandmother passed away early this morning.

Now, my Grandmother was suffering from Alzheimer's disease, and was living in a nursing home.  So, we knew that this was going to happen. We just didn't know when, nor did we expect it at this point.  I guess some part of me simply thought she'd go on forever, although I have ample evidence all around me that that is not the case.  People don't stay with us forever.

I've been antsy and unable to rest well for several days, and today I'm just sad and exhausted.  But we are in Orlando - my Grandmother moved to Florida some years ago with her husband, and my father and uncle followed them.  So, Florida is kind of like home for us, if home is where at least one parent lives.

I've been through illness, and injury, and now a loss while training for this marathon.  And while I had planned to dress up and be silly and have fun on this race, I'm not sure I have the heart to do that now.  I'm not entirely sure I have the heart to do the race itself, but my practical Grandmother would probably disapprove of the wasted entry fee if I did not at least make an effort. So, we'll see.

Right now I'm waiting for some phone calls and trying to sort things out.  I'll be offline for a few days - will return with an update early next week.  Hug your friends and family members, my friends, because we truly do not know how much time we have remaining.