Thoughts on Losing a Friend

Every Day Really is...a Gift

We try to be as objective as possible as we publish articles for the community, but today...is a different kind of day...

...and...today....this article is for ME....

....yet at the same time, I felt the need to share it with all of you.

It has been a mere few days since a dear friend and former business associate of 35 years, George Jacobs, and his wife, Patti,  made their semiannual pilgrimage to their favorite city, Las Vegas.

It had been a cold and damaging winter in Cleveland, Ohio this past year, and for months they were looking forward to getting back into the warm weather and continuing to travel by auto throughout the Southwest as George was "considering" retirement.

George always had one of the most successful insurance brokerage operations in the country, and let's just say....work...was fun... in his mind.

...but as is the case with all of us, the years passed; the times changed;  and year after year, the decision to retire always got pushed back....again and again.

It was not a matter of money...George was always very generous toward others,  but never toward himself.

For years I would always ask him if he had ever spent his first communion money given to him as a child....and pleaded with him...

...that it was about time he and his lovely wife, joined the ranks of the seniors to enjoy whatever time the good Lord allowed us.

George turned 68 not long ago....and it appeared that I had finally been making some headway in his thinking....

...thanks to some prophetic words given to me by another dear friend years ago when I decided to retire.

I told George...

 "Do you realize that if you're lucky, you probably won't be able to enjoy 10 more summers before your health won't allow you to enjoy them any longer...

...that 10 years is more like 10 minutes in a retiree's life, as the years pass by so quickly?"

I know...

...it's been 10 years since I retired, am the same age as George...and it's still hard to comprehend just how fast the last 10 years have passed...

...that the number of summers I may enjoy.....are also quite limited.

But...I'm not the subject of this story....

George and his wife are !

George and Patti arrived in Las Vegas on Saturday evening, April 25th. 

Like every trip they ever made to Las Vegas, the two week "detailed itinerary" that George would create each time,  allowed them to drive through a number of states to enjoy the scenery, and spend a few up front and at the end of the trip, days, in Las Vegas...to allow Patti her love....slot machines...

...before they would travel back to Cleveland.

They got a rental car, checked into their hotel, and couldn't wait to see the lights of the Strip while they were staying at the Aria. 

Saturday was fun...it was Patti's part of the trip...she knew that driving though the other states to see the sights was "for George"...a happy compromise !

Sunday rolled around, and unlike so many visitors who arrive here, that didn't stop them from getting up early and going to Mass, before the day would proceed.   

Their devotion to the Catholic faith has always been unquestionably the number one priority in their lives.

But this Sunday...something different would happen.

George parked the car after dropping Patti off at the front of the church, and as he was about to meet her... something was wrong....Patti had tripped and hit her head...

...and was being assisted by others who had witnessed her fall.

She was hurt...but it was believed the injury was not serious, and they continued their day.

After church, Patti knew that it was time to find her favorite slot machines, and off they went in search to find them.

Two hours passed and suddenly Patti was feeling ill....she thought it would be best to go back to the room and rest.

When she arrived at the Aria, her stomach became upset and she began to vomit....and now, George was beginning to worry.

His wife of 44 years (they had celebrated their anniversary a couple of days earlier on April 24th) didn't look "right", and an ambulance was called. 

Patti was taken to UMC Trauma Center when it was explained that she had taken a bad spill a few hours earlier....

...and two hours later, emergency brain surgery was performed.  The fall had caused bleeding in her brain.

George called me from the ambulance on the way to UMC to tell me what had taken place, and my wife, Marla, and I were off to UMC within minutes.

When we arrived....George had told us that the surgery was believed to have been successful....

...but that was not the case.

Sunday went into Monday, and her condition worsened...two of their three children flew in from Cleveland to be with their mom and dad....who were 2,500 miles from their home.

On Tuesday, the doctors gave George the news no person would ever want to hear....his wife of 44 years had been placed on life support, and that tests indicated no brain activity.

In the wee hours of Wednesday, April 29th....the decision was made by the family to remove life support from her; and within minutes, a wife and mother, who just three days previously had been looking forward to spending a two week vacation with her husband....was now gone.

As I write this, my heart is heavy, as my dear friend George, had to go back home to a house that will now be empty.  His companion of 44 years will never again greet him in the morning, or say good night to him as each day ends.

...Yet...those "10 summers" will continue to pass...won't they?

So as I said goodbye to the wife of a dear friend, I came to realize the true meaning of the words...

"Every Day is A Gift"

So....do as I did this morning...

...pick up that phone, or look over at that certain special someone and say 

"I Love You"    

Be a kinder person, and  appreciate those who have made you the person you are ...

...because summer is approaching...

...it will be short...

...and suddenly the number 10...

...will be 9 !

Dick Arendt