The loss of one great man...

Ok, so I know I promised to update about Halloween and all that has been going on around here. Honestly, I have barely even seen my computer since last week sometime.

The laundry around this place is slowly trying to take over...

Not to mention I worked an extra day last week and then the day I was so extremely tired and thought I couldn't function anymore, I found out that I could. See, I got a call from my dearest friend Debbie (who happens to be married to my cousin Mark) and she wondered if I could go down and check on Mark's dad. They had found him unresponsive in his chair. Debbie had called 911 and they were on their way, but since I live 1/4 of a mile away, she wondered if I would go down and check on him until they got there. Thankfully, Grandma J and Grandpa J were already here! They were graciously watching the kids so I could get a little catnap in as I had worked and hadn't had any sleep.

I was in a panic driving down the road, I didn't know what I would find. I didn't know what to expect and though I am a nurse, what could I do in the field? At the hospital, sure I know what to do, but this was different! I decided to keep my cool and just assess the situation as I got to it. I walked in and both Chuck and Mark were standing there. Not really sure what was going on or what to do. Thankfully, Lyndell (Chuck and Mark's dad) was breathing and he had a pulse! *whew* He had a temp of 104 axillary. I asked for some cool cloths and placed them under his arms and by that point, the rescue squad was starting to show up. Darren was first there and had difficulty getting a blood pressure. Before I could even offer to take the blood pressure, the remainder of the rescue unit was there and I just stepped aside. To make a long story short, Lyndell ended up being life-flighted to Methodist Medical Center.

The next couple of days was very hard on the family as they had to make some difficult decisions. Lyndell had found out in August that he had cancer and that it had spread to the bone. He had been undergoing chemotherapy for the cancer. He apparently, had gotten a 'bug' and his body had nothing left to fight it off with. His family had to decide to ween him off the cardiac drugs that were helping to keep him going. They were told that he would never come out of the state he was in. His family was devastated. They were not prepared for this and it wasn't ever what they expected.

Lyndell died on Halloween. I felt honored that Mark and Debbie asked me to watch Austin for them the noc before Halloween and Halloween noc. I was more than happy to keep Austin for them! So, for Halloween, I had 2 pumpkins, a pirate (with a skull mask), a transformer and a hippie!

I had a blast with all of them! Austin is so well behaved and quiet (very different from my crew)! But, he played very well with Sammy and seemed to do ok. Debbie and Mark had requested that Austin not be told about his grandpa b/c they didn't want him upset for Halloween. How amazing they were to think of Austin and I made sure that NO ONE mentioned anything around him. Austin got to have a great Halloween before learning about his grandpa.

I also have to mention how terrific I think Debbie's older boys are. Her oldest son, Derrick, is a senior in high school and after his football practice, then he came and picked up Austin and took him trick or treating the noc before Halloween. Many of our local communities do stuff on both nocs. While many kids would take advantage of not having any responsibility, he ASKED if he could take Austin out.

I couldn't even begin to tell you the impact of Lyndell's death not only on his family, but our community and in the business world. Lyndell had started his own business -Corsaw Hardwood Lumber. He is well known all over the state and probably beyond for his hardwood floors. He will be greatly missed.

His visitation last noc had at least a 2 hr wait in line. It is one of the biggest visitations I have ever seen. They had a beautiful service for him today at Wiley Luthern Church. Which I got to attend b/c my best friend JEN came out and stayed with the girls (I couldn't ever thank her enough for all she does for us)! His oldest grand-daughter, Becky, got up and spoke and did a phenomninal job! A business partner also spoke and so did his nephew-in-law. They all did a wonderful job and had us laughing and crying. Mr. Howerter (my music teacher from grade school) sung a beautiful peice. After the service, everyone gathered in the basement of the church for a delicious array of food!

If you have made it this far in to this story, please go hug your parents, your children, your grandparents... anyone who means a lot to you... and tell them that you love them. You never know when that might the last time that you get to say that to them.

May God Bless you and your family.