was taking. Those are my favorite pictures, as
they show the light and joy in Michael’s eyes, even when his
body started taking a turn for the worse.
“This
is beautiful,” Michael says through the tears he isn’t
even remotely trying to hide. “I love it. We love it.” He takes Rachel’s hand and kisses it.
“So,”
he says, collecting himself. “If I recall that whirlwind of an
entrance earlier, you said something about celebrating life’s
most important celebrations .
Plural. What else do you have up your sleeves? And … do I
smell a turkey?”
“Well,
Mr. Meadows, we do have a few more surprises for you,” I say
with a snicker. I’m giddy with anticipation.
“Uh
oh!” he exclaims.
Will
helps Michael up from his seat and escorts him to the family room.
There is a pipe and draping shielding the room from view. Michael
cocks an eyebrow up and looks at me suspiciously with a smile.
“And
what, exactly, is behind door number two?”
“I
hope you’re ready for this,” I warn. With that, I pull
the draping aside and reveal a Christmas winter wonderland. A
seven-foot tree is fully decorated in the corner of the room with a
train and track encircling it. Icicle lights trim the perimeter of
the ceiling and an entire Christmas village has taken residence on
the top of the baby grand piano in the bay window. And presents. Lots
of presents are under the tree for all of us. Rachel was so excited
about the presents that she was able to sneak out yesterday and buy a
few from them to us. I told her she didn’t have to do that, but
she insisted participating in the gift giving.
Leaning
against Will, Michael covers his mouth with both hands in utter
shock. I look at Will, feeling accomplished in creating a day that is
already full of love and joy. A day that none of us will ever forget.
A day full of memories that will trump the sad ones upon us.
Will
holds back his own tears as he looks at Michael. “Merry
Christmas, brother.”
Chapter 9
We
were gifted eleven more days with Michael before he passed.
Four
days after the day we celebrated Michael’s birthday, Christmas,
and Thanksgiving, he took a turn for the worse. We brought Hospice in
to help, as each day was touch and go. Will pretty much moved in and
spent every waking hour, and then some, by Michael’s side. He
read Michael’s favorite books aloud to him and helped feed him
what little he could keep down. Eventually Michael stopped eating
altogether because his body just couldn’t process anything. His
mother, Victoria, was there for his last three days on this earth.
Michael
took his last breath at two thirty-seven on a Thursday afternoon with
his wife, his mother, his brother, and me by his side. It was an
emotional day for all of us, but the worst day of Rachel’s
life. She lost her best friend and partner. She saw it coming and
there was nothing she could do but wait for it to happen.
Will
and Michael’s sisters came in for the funeral. It was the first
time they had all been together since our wedding. Not exactly the
reunion they were hoping for, but all agreed it was nice to see each
other.
Funerals
are strange for me. They bring on a mix of emotions due to my only
points of reference for them: my parents’ funeral where I
wasn’t allowed to speak, my grandmother’s funeral where
everyone should be glad I didn’t speak, my grandfather’s
funeral where my too-young self gave the eulogy, and Will’s
funeral where his father gave an Oscar-worthy performance. Michael’s
funeral, I’ve decided, is going to erase all of the other
funeral memories. Will turned it into a day to celebrate Michael’s
life. A day when the life and character of his brother was the focus,
not his sad and too-early departure.
Victoria
stayed with Rachel for a week as we all helped her pack Michael’s
things up. I asked if she wanted to wait a bit, but she said that
Michael asked her not to and she wanted to honor his request.
Victoria and I
they show the light and joy in Michael’s eyes, even when his
body started taking a turn for the worse.
“This
is beautiful,” Michael says through the tears he isn’t
even remotely trying to hide. “I love it. We love it.” He takes Rachel’s hand and kisses it.
“So,”
he says, collecting himself. “If I recall that whirlwind of an
entrance earlier, you said something about celebrating life’s
most important celebrations .
Plural. What else do you have up your sleeves? And … do I
smell a turkey?”
“Well,
Mr. Meadows, we do have a few more surprises for you,” I say
with a snicker. I’m giddy with anticipation.
“Uh
oh!” he exclaims.
Will
helps Michael up from his seat and escorts him to the family room.
There is a pipe and draping shielding the room from view. Michael
cocks an eyebrow up and looks at me suspiciously with a smile.
“And
what, exactly, is behind door number two?”
“I
hope you’re ready for this,” I warn. With that, I pull
the draping aside and reveal a Christmas winter wonderland. A
seven-foot tree is fully decorated in the corner of the room with a
train and track encircling it. Icicle lights trim the perimeter of
the ceiling and an entire Christmas village has taken residence on
the top of the baby grand piano in the bay window. And presents. Lots
of presents are under the tree for all of us. Rachel was so excited
about the presents that she was able to sneak out yesterday and buy a
few from them to us. I told her she didn’t have to do that, but
she insisted participating in the gift giving.
Leaning
against Will, Michael covers his mouth with both hands in utter
shock. I look at Will, feeling accomplished in creating a day that is
already full of love and joy. A day that none of us will ever forget.
A day full of memories that will trump the sad ones upon us.
Will
holds back his own tears as he looks at Michael. “Merry
Christmas, brother.”
Chapter 9
We
were gifted eleven more days with Michael before he passed.
Four
days after the day we celebrated Michael’s birthday, Christmas,
and Thanksgiving, he took a turn for the worse. We brought Hospice in
to help, as each day was touch and go. Will pretty much moved in and
spent every waking hour, and then some, by Michael’s side. He
read Michael’s favorite books aloud to him and helped feed him
what little he could keep down. Eventually Michael stopped eating
altogether because his body just couldn’t process anything. His
mother, Victoria, was there for his last three days on this earth.
Michael
took his last breath at two thirty-seven on a Thursday afternoon with
his wife, his mother, his brother, and me by his side. It was an
emotional day for all of us, but the worst day of Rachel’s
life. She lost her best friend and partner. She saw it coming and
there was nothing she could do but wait for it to happen.
Will
and Michael’s sisters came in for the funeral. It was the first
time they had all been together since our wedding. Not exactly the
reunion they were hoping for, but all agreed it was nice to see each
other.
Funerals
are strange for me. They bring on a mix of emotions due to my only
points of reference for them: my parents’ funeral where I
wasn’t allowed to speak, my grandmother’s funeral where
everyone should be glad I didn’t speak, my grandfather’s
funeral where my too-young self gave the eulogy, and Will’s
funeral where his father gave an Oscar-worthy performance. Michael’s
funeral, I’ve decided, is going to erase all of the other
funeral memories. Will turned it into a day to celebrate Michael’s
life. A day when the life and character of his brother was the focus,
not his sad and too-early departure.
Victoria
stayed with Rachel for a week as we all helped her pack Michael’s
things up. I asked if she wanted to wait a bit, but she said that
Michael asked her not to and she wanted to honor his request.
Victoria and I
Similar Books
