The Last Chapter

Yes, this is the last chapter.  It’s a sad one.  Grumpy requested that I not tell many people of his health issues.  He had a small stroke in July, got pneumonia a few times from not being able to swallow properly from the stroke, and he just became weaker and weaker over the next few months.  He had test after test done and saw several doctors in Michigan and in Texas.  When we arrived in Texas, he was so very weak, and the next day, he was admitted to the hospital and then was transferred to a rehab unit.  I visited him every day while I was working at the RV park as the activities director. 

At the rehab unit

He seemed to be doing better with rehab, was in good spirits, and after two weeks he came home.  I did not find out until later that he came home against recommendations.  He was still very weak, and being in a motorhome made things more difficult for him.  He was home for two nights before I found another rehab unit for him to go back to. 

 However, when it came time for him to go to the new rehab unit, he was so weak he needed help getting out of the motorhome and into the car.  It took three men to carry him down the stairs.  He was in respiratory distress and ended up in the emergency room where, after about five minutes, I realized they were working to just save his life at that point.  He had a pseudomonas sepsis infection in his blood and he could just not fight it.  There was more going on in his body than just the stroke, but the doctors never had time to figure out what it was. 

 Grumpy passed away the following afternoon, November 23^rd, 2019.  I soothed him as much as I could until he took his last breath.  After all of his suffering, I know that he is finally resting peacefully.  His last few months had been quite miserable for him. 

 

I told him to give me a sign when he was ready to go.

We had a celebration of life for Grumpy a few weeks later in the Dallas area.  An old neighbor took us out on his boat so that we could place his ashes in the lake in front of the house where he spent so much of his life. We all wore one of his bright shirts in his honor.

 

What would Grumpy do?

Saying goodbye on Cedar Creek Lake

Steve, I miss you every day and I always will.  You have been in my heart since the day I met you in Orange, California, in 1979.  I remember sitting across from you at Charlie Brown’s after work, and your smile when our eyes met.  You came to the mailroom at Thermco the following morning where I was sorting mail and bought just one stamp from me – and then asked me out.   You were a wonderful man and you have touched many lives.

Healthy and happy Grumpy

Sweet Grumpy