Last Saturday (4/30) my sister Elna slipped into heaven to meet her Savior whom she had loved since her early teens. As she left this life behind, she was surrounded by her two daughters and husband of 50 years. The room was filled with love. And tears.
Such sweet memories we have of those last weeks with Elna. Some of the sweetest center around her quick wit that continued to surface even as her body weakened.
One evening, before she moved to the hospital bed in the living room, we (Heather, Bethany, Chris, Joie & I (aka the Team)) were gathered around the bed peppering her with questions.
“Do you need another pillow?â€
“Do you want to get up to use the bedside commode?â€
“Do you want to put your brace on (per the previous question)?â€
“Do you want another sip of juice?â€
“Do you think you might want to poop?†(Yes, there were a fair number of body function questions being asked.)
Finally there was a pause. She looked at us and said – “I think I need to “Phone a Friendâ€! Call Dr. Mike – maybe he knows the answer!†Took us a while to stop giggling over that one.
When the day came to move her down the hall to her ‘new digs’ – the hospital bed in the back of the living room – she looked up at Beth (who was gently explaining the move as she pushed the wheelchair) and said with a straight face – “Does everyone have my forwarding address?â€
Encouraging her to eat brought another slew of questions.
“How about a bagel this morning?â€
“Maybe some chicken?â€
“How about a bite of this brownie?â€
“Lora brought some homemade tapioca? Does that sound good?â€
When we finally got around to offering her a Pringle potato chip, her face would break into a grin- “I thought you’d never ask!†she’d say in her quiet sweet voice. More chuckling ensued!
And just in those last quiet days while I was trying to entice her with one of her long-time favorites, a soft boiled egg with buttery toast, the questions came again –
“Are you ready for another bite?â€
“Do you want a bite with toast?â€
“This bite has lots of yolk. Does that sound good?â€
Finally she looked at me – “Are you egging me on?â€
Many more memories – and many more tears and smiles – will be recorded here in the coming days. But for now I just want to remember the sweetest sound of her joining us in our hymn sing each night.
Precious Elna – you were the best of us! We’re so happy for your official New Address, but oh how our hearts are aching!
Dear Stephanie, Such precious memories! I’m so thankful you were able to have that time with with all the family. Continuing to pray for you all through this tough time. MaryAnn #2725
Such a sweet reunion with your sister, praying for all your family to rest in his goodness. So sorry for your loss. We will keep you in our prayers ðŸ™â¤ï¸
Made me cry…… Thank goodness for sweet memories and the knowledge of where she is!
Stephanie, thank you for sharing these precious memories with us, your Sower family. Will continue to pray for you during these difficult times, but I loved the “forwarding address”, comment. What hope we all have of our future address as well .
Such precious memories Stephanie. Thank you for sharing with us. We continue praying for you and your family for peace and comfort. What a blessing for her to be resting in the arms of Jesus and for y’all to know that she is.
Love between sisters is forever and always keeps us connected even when we can’t be together. You are so blessed to have been there for each other. Beautiful ending and Elna is with God looking over the family.
God bless you as you grieve and celebrate Elna’s life and blessing to all of her family. Prayers that God comforts you all as He welcomes her to the new address.
I’m so glad you had those last days together showering Elna with love and ushering her into Jesus arms. While you grieve you will talks about those moments… memories you’ll cherish forever. 💕
You are such a precious writer Thank You
What a beautiful time with each other. Singing each night touched my heart!
Tomorrow is Mother’s day and I will be thinking of all of you. You are in my prayers.
A truly remarkable woman.â¤ï¸