Month: December 2009

This was the most difficult thing I’ve had to do in my life…

Jimmy was like a grandfather to my brother’s children.  He raised them as his own grandkids.  Jimmy died alone in the summer of 2006 from a sudden heart attack.  My brother asked me to go with him, for support, to tell his 14 year old daughter who was at a cheerleading camp for the week.  We drove the hour to get there, not knowing exactly what to say.

We interrupted the cheerleading lesson, pulled his daughter aside into a private hallway, and I became overwhelmed with the grief that she was about to experience.  I wished we didn’t have to do this, as I didn’t want to see her suffer, but it had to be done.  It was very, very difficult for me to watch, I can’t imagine what it was like for my brother to actually tell her.  I watched her face turn to sorrow.  And I watched them cry and hug as I cried.    We hugged and held each other for a long time. <sniff>  Then we felt better.    And life does go on…

Afterward, I was so thankful my brother asked me to go, as painful as it was.  I was glad to be his support.  Certainly not something I would want to do on my own.  In a way, I no longer dread the day I have to tell someone that news.  I am a more capable counselor because of this experience.  It made me stronger, and for that, I am eternally grateful.

{Have you ever had to tell a loved one, that one of their loved ones has died?!}