Does it ever seem like you hear more about sad things happening during Christmas than during any other time of the year? Maybe it's just the fact that it's Christmas and things are supposed to be happy and joyful and sad times aren't supposed to happen, so when we hear about them at this time of year it makes them seem more profound.
Why am I rambling about this, you ask? No, I haven't heard about an unusual number of tragedies this Christmas- a few, but not too many. It's because I lost 3 of my 4 grandparents right around Christmas. Today is the 5th anniversary of my grandfather's death. Although he was in bad health, losing him at Christmas was especially hard. To make it even more sad, it was nearly 10 years to the day that we lost his wife, my grandmother. She passed away in 1993, a mere 3 days before Christmas. Talk about a difficult Christmas. The presents for her were wrapped and under the tree, her stocking was hung on the mantle, and out of the blue, she had a cerebral hemorrhage and died. I was 11 at the time. I, along with 3 of my cousins, was staying over at my grandparent's house that night. I will never forget what we awoke to that morning. My grandfather had found my grandmother in her bathroom, unresponsive. My mother did CPR, tried all she could, but nothing helped. To make matters worse, the ambulance got lost trying to find my grandparents' house in rural South Carolina.
This was perhaps the hardest of the 3 deaths of my grandparents, probably because of its suddenness. Here today, gone tomorrow. You just never know when the good Lord is going to call someone you love home.
That Christmas, my youngest cousin, 4 years old at the time, got a pretend phone in her stocking and tried to call Heaven to speak to Grandma. I refused to take the traditional family photo because it just wasn't complete without her. To say we were all shocked and confused would be an understatement.
When my Grandpa passed away ten years later, it wasn't as big of a shock, but still sad. However, I know that even though he was leaving behind a large, loving family, he was going to be with the one person he had spent every day for ten years missing like no one could imagine. So his death was a little easier to take.
However, it's never easy. I mentioned another grandparent I lost around Christmas. My Poppy actually died in 1993 also, but in January, 11 months before my grandmother. Although his death wasn't at Christmas, he went into a coma several days after Christmas and never woke up. Colon cancer claimed him, and his death was the first one I experienced that really affected me. My Poppy was wonderful. He always referred to me as "the baby"- mind you, baby had about 3 or 4 syllables in his Southern accent. As soon as I was out of diapers he would take me to get some sort of treat and then out to the farm to visit my Daddy. There was nothing I wanted that he wouldn't give me. To say he spoiled me would be an major understatement.
The world lost 3 great people when it lost my 3 grandparents. I get most nostalgic at Christmas because that's when the memories of their deaths is most poignant. So, forgive me for my long post on a somewhat unhappy topic.
Has anybody else lost loved ones during the Christmas season?
my dad's mom passed away in early december in 2004 and my mom's dad passed away over thanksgiving weekend in 1990. it was hard the first few years after they died, but it's always nice to remember them each year.
ReplyDeleteI lost my Nana the week before Christmas, and the holidays were so hard the first few years. It's been 14 years now, but I can clearly remember how difficult it seemed to feel happy that holiday. And I still miss her so incredibly much.
ReplyDeleteIt is never easy to lose the people we love, but certainly losing them during the holidays, during a time of year that celebrates family, makes it even harder. Wishing you a peaceful and Merry Christmas.