September 5, 2011
Re: My Three Angels
Today is Monday and I am asking my son to help me
draft a letter which will be sent after I am gone. As a client/patient
of TLC I wanted to share some of my thoughts on your service.
It seems like it was yesterday that my son and I
and my oldest granddaughter sat in the emergency room and heard my
diagnosis; I have lung cancer which has metastasized to the spine and it is
inoperable and I have weeks if months to left.
Almost immediately we were contacted by your
offices and so would start our relationship.
Initially we met at the house with a young lady
named Kate I believe. She was very respectful, patient and
caring. She did not make me feel rushed or unwanted as so many young people
do to older folks like me.
My first angel was Karen Gardner and one
of the most important ones as my nurse she would help guide me on my final
journey through good times and in bad. Karen never made me do anything
I didn’t want to and sometimes did nothing more that hug me or hold my hand.
That first day was a hectic day and I was lucky it didn’t kill me, it seem
to move so fast before I knew it I had a room full of hospital furniture,
medicine and now a regime that I would follow until my passing.
This first day was a busy one and scary for me it
just seem like everything was happening so fast. I would meet my
second angel Laura Breen who in the midst of the day, helped to clean
me for the first time in a long time, bathed and pampered like a million
dollars. Laura would become an integral part to my well being even
under the circumstances not only did she clean me but she became my friend,
my confidant, she listed and genuine seem to care about me, never rushed,
always gentle.
My last angel I feared the most, Amy Yoffe.
I feared what she represented – My Life in its entirety. Amy helped me
to deal with my regrets, my fears and my emotions; in fact she helped me
more that she will ever know.
Today I wanted to put into writing what I wanted
to say because some changes are coming I can feel it and I don’t know how
much longer I have. You need to know that these Three Angels
were the three that I seen but it was also Carmella and Gina who called and
checked in on me on the weekends too. YES it was even the equipment
guy who I hated in the beginning all of you made me feel like I was
important and cared for.
I will never be able to tell Karen just how much
she had done for me and my son. She was more than just a nurse; she
actually became a part of our family. Laura I will miss due to part to
our friendship we had a lot in common and I truly loved the time I spent
with her as she cleaned up “my flower”. In the end, Amy allowed me to
scream and shout and to recognize my place in all of this and tried to make
sense of it all.
You met me at the end of my life and you gave me
so much THANK YOU! I have asked my son to mail this after I am gone to let
you know how much I enjoyed our time together.
Sincerely yours