A foot in each world

A hospice agency gave us a little booklet on what to expect as Mom nears death. It’s been extremely helpful to recognize and accept her lessening appetite and her varying states of consciousness and drowsiness (mostly the latter).

The booklet says that the person is going back and forth between life and death in a sense, already seeing people she hasn’t seen for a long time, and recalling things from the past. Mom also talks to herself but we have a hard time hearing the words, let alone understanding them.

Yesterday, she told me clearly that a woman came to see her, and I asked her who it was. She couldn’t tell me but said, “We’ll have to find out.” I wanted to ask, “Was it your mother? Was it your best friend, MJ?” I can’t help but wonder what her reunion with those and other dear long-passed people will be like.

Sue