Location: Heart of Haynesville RV Park; Mansfield, Louisiana (Home Base)
I apologize for not making any posts over the last few months. I was attending to my X-Wife as she was hospitalized several times and ultimately passed away on August 26, 2026. I will be writing this post with our grandchildren and their children in mind. Out of everything in the world, her grandchildren were the top of the list of things she loved dearly. Oh, she would always say her love was a tie between everyone in the family, but most suspected and I knew for sure, that her grandchildren were loved by her the most. Our children were a close second and as for me, I was farther down the list. I learned to accept that over the nearly fifty years we knew each other.
Kathy passed away peacefully after being transferred from a regular hospital room to the in-hospital hospice room. As she took her last breath, she was surrounded by our three children, me and her sister.
I've mentioned my "memory demons" in previous posts but mine are very, very small compared to the demons Kathy carried from her abusive childhood. I only know what little she talked about over the years and most of the information I now know was only told to me within the last six years. Besides her memory demons she was also plagued by physical demons over the years. I won't go into detail about each, but a simple list would include: heart attack on the back side of the heart, a heart valve replacement, a defibrillator/pacemaker installed in her chest, several artery stents around her heart and in her legs, a massive aorta artery aneurism repair, lung cancer resulting in the lower third of her lung being removed, a "watchman" device installed inside her heart, a barostim device installed in her chest and carotid artery, ischemic colitis, congestive heart failure, close to dialysis due to her kidneys failing, and some that I've forgotten about.
Needless to say, she was in a lot of pain from her medical issues but routinely refused to take anything for the pain except Tylenol. Once her kidneys and liver started being affected, she stopped the Tylenol but still only begrudgingly taking a stronger pain medication now and then. But I would bet any amount of money the grandchildren never knew of her pain even after I began pushing her around in a wheelchair to their events. She didn't want anyone to know what she was going through and that was probably a carryover from her abusive childhood.
For the twenty-eight years we were married and for the last twelve years of her life, I did everything I could to provide a safe environment for her. I always thought "safety" was worth more to her than anything else I could give her. It was something I don't think she ever fully experienced on a regular basis until our marriage back in 1978. It is my hope she has now found the ultimate peace and safety where she is now.
I will post more information about me, Brandon and the family in upcoming posts. I haven't made a firm decision to continue traveling or not. That decision will be made after the Thanksgiving gathering of the family.
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| Sunrises promise "new beginnings", right? |
Ya'll take care of each other. Maybe I'll Cya down the road.
