Grandpa and Grandma

I drove to San Antonio this past weekend to visit my grandparents.  This was a painful visit to make, and I made it alone.  I knew this road trip would be difficult, partially because I didn't know what to expect, and also because I knew Grandpa was now in a assisted care facility. 

The events leading up to this trip have been sketchy until now.  I was finally able to hear the entire story from my Dad over the weekend. 

The day after my Grandma's 90th birthday (March 22), Grandpa accidently drove into an intersection on a red light.  Grandpa is 89 years old...that says it all, doesn't it?  To make matters worst, their car was a '95 Toyota with no air bags.  Grandma had taken off her seat belt for a moment to take off her jacket when they were hit.  I didn't see her at her worst, but my Dad said her face looked horrible.  They were both taken via ambulance to the hospital, released the same day (no broken bones, thank God), and went home.

Once back at their apartment, both Grandpa and Grandma got sick because they couldn't really take care of themselves after the accident.  They were in pretty good shape beforehand...no long-term medical issues, they were mobile, etc.  My Dad found out about their state during one of his regular phone calls, and promptly went to San Antonio.  He spent the next 3 weeks nursing them back to health.  I can't get into the details because even I cannot comprehend them yet...all I can say is my Dad had to do nearly everything for them. 

Grandma got better, but Grandpa did not.  Something happened to him after the accident...he just stopped doing his normal routine, taking care of himself, eating, etc.  It took my Dad 5 days to convince him to go to the doctor, and by then, he decided he had to go straight to the hospital.  When the ambulance came, Grandpa refused to go.  After more convincing from the "really big, 6' 4" EMT," (my Dad's words), Grandpa finally went to the hospital.  He spend 4 days there and was diagnosed with pneumonia.  Thankfully, it was not a severe case, and Grandpa responded to the antibiotics. 

Once Grandpa was released, he was as weak as a baby, and they moved him to a room in the Health Care Center.  This is right next door to the high-rise condominiums at the retirement community they live in.  For the first few days, he would not eat, drink, or take his medications.  Grandpa is a very, very stubborn man, and I was truly afraid he wouldn't make it.  He even yelled and cussed at some of the nurses...which didn't surprise me, but it gave me hope.  Obviously he had some fighting spirit in him!  Currently, he is doing better and can sit up to eat, but has no energy at all, and cannot get out of bed yet.   Long-term, the doctor says is recovery is up to him.  If he eats and drinks enough and takes his meds, he should be fine.  Without it being said out loud, I think we all believe Grandpa will not be the same ever again though. 

So Grandpa has been down in Health Care for a couple of weeks now.  They moved Grandma down to his room because they wanted to be together.  All the nurses are very kind, and they're all pulling for them...June 15 is their 70th wedding anniversary, can you believe it?  One of the nurses took these pictures for me. 

I knew I wanted to go and see my grandparents before it was too late. I realize this is their "journey into the sunset of life." When I got to San Antonio Saturday morning, I went straight to their room. Grandma looked fine, and Grandpa recognized me right off the bat. He cannot remember anything from one minute to the next, but he knew who I was. I visited them on and off all the rest of the day and twice on Sunday before I went back home. I told them over and over again I loved them, and they said they loved me too. I will never, ever forget those precious words.  The last thing my Grandma said was, "I hope you took some things to remember me by."  It took everything I had not to cry.

Honestly, the most difficult part of this whole weekend was helping with the clean-out of my Grandparent's apartment.  I went through a lifetime of things, and seeing their belongings brought back so many memories.  I knew certain pieces of furniture, pictures, and little accessories had never been moved from their places in my lifetime.  And...Grandpa had become a hoarder.  My Dad had tackled the worst, but I still threw out periodicals and catalogs that were 10 years old, used batteries, empty bags, empty boxes, a dozen small cheap radios, it was mind-boggling. 

My Dad told me I could take what I wanted as long as I ran it by him first.  I initially wanted only 4 paintings, (Grandma had done over 40 oils over the past 30 years) but came home with a few other things...a small box of jewelry, a hand-painted lap desk, a holy water font, a wooden nativity set, a few pieces of china, old photos, a scrapbook my Grandma had kept of all the pictures and letters I'd ever sent her (I choked up when I saw it), a small rug, 12 of her paintings, and some other momentoes.  Nothing was of real value, just things I knew I wanted to pass down to my own children some day. 

The most precious thing I was able to bring back was my Grandma's rocking chair.  It was the one thing I admit I'd hoped to have.  Yesterday, as I drove home, I would look at it through my rear view mirror, and would just start crying.  I couldn't even sit in it until today...there is a crack in one of the runners that will have to be fixed, but otherwise, the chair is in fine shape.  The finish is a bit worn on the armrests; David said we could have it refinished, but I said no.   I want to keep it exactly the way it is.  I still cannot look at it without getting choked up...it doesn't seem real to have things of my Grandparents while they are still living. 

The chair is now in our bedroom.  Grandma embroidered the upholstery herself many years ago.

And here are a few of the oil paintings. 

I am praying my Grandparents will be around a little bit longer.  Maybe they are ready, and know things we don't, but none of us are ready to say goodbye just yet.  I know this is all in God's hands, and His plan is perfect, yet our whole family is struggling just the same.  A good friend told me it's because we all love Grandpa and Grandma so much.  That much is true...no matter what happens, they will always be loved.