The end of this leg of the journey

Dear Friends and Family,

It is with regret that I inform you that our beloved Carol is no longer with us in the physical universe (at least in the form we are familiar with).

Although she was continually weakening, she told me as early as last week that she wanted to keep fighting the cancer. And she was winning that battle. Her tumor marker numbers were still falling. But the Cachexia (wasting away) was getting worse much faster that her tumors were decreasing. She was frail and emaciated.

On Thursday, she had a seizure that last lasted multiple hours and surely caused neurological damage. There was no fun left for her at that point, and Hospice kept her as comfortable as possible. George, Mike, Tanya, her caregiver Ruth and myself never left her side.

Her niece Darcy and her family came up to say goodbye, and our family friend Bethany and her family came up to say good bye. All people my Mother would have wanted to see.

She died peacefully on Friday, August 13th. The mood in the room was purely that of gratitude. She had suffered so much the last few days, that we all wanted her to cross to the other side and be with her Mom and Dad and other close family and friends who had made the journey before her. Surely there is more for her to look forward to there than staying in a body that no longer served her needs.

We are deeply saddened when we think of our personal loss, but deeply thankful when we think about how much better it is for her.

She did not want to have a memorial service or a funeral. Instead, she wished to have a celebration of her life! In her honor, we will be having a party just the way she would have wanted it: POT LUCK!
The date is Saturday, Oct 2, and we hope you will let us know if you can make it!

My Mom was so grateful to you for reading her blogs. When she had the strength, she cherished logging on and seeing the comments you left.

Mexico was a miracle in all of our lives. She outlived Kaisers prediction for her life by an entire year, and the treatment in Mexico kept her feeling healthy for a good 8 months, which was plenty of time for her to enjoy her family and friends and think about all of the things that were important to her life. And it turned out, she had all of them.

Blessing to you from Carol, I am sure!

-Seth Coltan