this will be quick...gary woke up this morning!!! i cut his pain meds in half last night, he slept all night and this morning seems to be a little refreshed. i removed the oxygen, his breathing is nice and even and he is no longer struggling. i will keep it handy, in case he needs it again but for now, he's doing fine w/o it.
he asked for some coffee so i gave him a few tiny sips from the end of a straw. i asked him if he thinks he might feel good enough to sit in his chair today and he said yes. i am so hoping we can have him up and in his chair before the hospice nurse arrives.
i still plan to go talk to the funeral director today. i know it's inevitable, i will need his services sooner than later and i don't see the sense in waiting.
we never know how long these good periods will last. sometimes gary will rally for several hours, other times only for a few minutes before he slips back into a deep sleep. for however long they last, nana and i and usually 2 or 3 of gary's brothers revel in them.
when we were putting gary in his chair on sunday, george and rod were on each side of him and i was guiding his hips back to the chair. i said "one more step sweetie" and he didn't move. i repeated "one more step, just one more step and then you can sit." i thought he was falling and i gasped. george started laughing and told me gary was dancing with me. that stinker was standing there and moving his feet as if he was dancing and he was grinning and winking at george. he's STILL trying to make me laugh!
in all of this, i can see a little humor here and there. yesterday and last night, it was almost as if we were at his wake. once in a while, one of us would slip up and refer to him in the past tense. we had to keep reminding each other than he is still here and it looks like today, HE will be the one to keep us on our toes.
more later and thank you for your kind words. never in a bazillion years did i ever think *I* could inspire other people. if i have, that's nice but i hope i never EVER have to talk any of you through this experience. i can honestly say, although i questioned my faith more than once in the very beginning, i have grown so much closer to God. if nothing else good comes out of this, at least i have that.
love & hugs to you all. xoxoxo nina