The time to start is now
“It was like a fire ravished me!”, my grandmother sobbed after returning from the hospital.
My grandfather had just passed away from esophageal cancer, days after being admitted to the hospital. He was 69 years old. At the time, I didn’t quite understand the gravity of the moment, as a 9 year old kid.
I wasn’t that close to him. I had faint memories of riding the Muni down the streets of San Francisco, grabbing onto him. Otherwise, it was just another day in my life.
Fast forward 17 years, and did I ever feel the moment.. My father, at the age of 62, lying in his home hospital bed, surrounded by my mother, hospice care, and our local Rabbi. Absolutely incoherent, pumped with Morphine, and down to his last breath.
This time, I was at the center of the experience.
Holding his hand, I remember him looking at me, unable to speak, but tears filling his eyes. Staring at me one last time, my father, my best friend, let go…
As mentioned in my battles with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, the experience of watching my father pass away at such a young age, with so much left to be a part of, put me in a very dark place.
I had lost my mentor, my rock, and most importantly, a great friend. We did…
