IrishPotatooee
Notable Member
- Jun 15, 2017
- 1,806
- 4,519
'Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the church,
Everyone was crying,
Everyone was hurt...
Personally, I like that Christmas story. However, I don't think I can enjoy anything this Christmas. By the way, my name is Snow. I want to tell you about the tragedy before Christmas me and my family experienced.
17th December 2018
I was minding my own business, playing some games on my laptop when my father, Eric, knocked at my door. He was with my twin brother, Alfa. "Listen", my father started. "Your Grandfather Emory was taken into hospital today. The doctors said he won't live much longer and he most than likely won't make it out of the hospital alive.". My first concern was with my father. "Are you ok?", I asked with tears starting in my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." Me and Alfa went to give him a big hug. We continued with what we were doing beforehand, although that thought kept spinning around in my head. Was my grandfather to die before Christmas?
19th December 2018
After school, my father brought me, Alfa, my older brother, Wolfy and his girlfriend, Kim, to the hospital to visit my grandfather in what would later become his death bed. There was a few family members visiting him at the time so we had to wait in the seating room until we were allowed to see him. Before I even went into the room, I broke down in tears. Alfa was there to comfort me. "Hey, it's ok.", he said as he patted me on the back. It helped a small bit. Small being the key word.
We went into the room, which was a private room. I think Emory liked that a lot. There to greet us was my grandmother, Jay, who was Emory's wife. I went over and gave her a hug as I knew it was hard for her, it was her husband that was dying after all. They knew each other for more or less sixty years, first meeting when Jay was fifteen years old, while Emory was eighteen (if my maths is correct anyways). My grandfather was sleeping. He was covered in red patches, which I questioned my father about. "It's because he has no platelets in his blood. His blood isn't clotting so he's been on blood transfusions.", Eric explained. I hated seeing Emory like this and I could see Kim tearing up. I rubbed her arm and comforted her. Just as we were about to leave, my grandfather awoke. He was clearly not with anything as Jay had to explain to him who was there. After doing so, I waved at my grandfather, and he waved back. Little did I know that would be the last time I saw him alive...
22nd December 2018
I was about to get a shower around five o'clock when my mother, Ally called me and Alfa down the stairs. I had a bad feeling as my oldest sibling, Maddie asked her if we should cancel the take out. Maddie would never cancel food unless it was important! I was on the top of the stair case when I saw both of them at the kitchen door. "Is everything ok?", I asked, but I already had a bad feeling about this. Maddie was in tears, while my mother looked as if she was about to break down in tears. "Your father called. Your grandfather passed away at half four today."
I was in complete shock. Sure I expected him to pass on, bone cancer isn't really something you recover from (or cancer in general) but this soon? I went to hug both of them. I ran upstairs in tears to tell Alfa the news, as he didn't hear my mother calling him. My father came home and we all gave him a big hug, one of the biggest I had given anyone. He had just lost his father. I felt horrible for him, rather than for myself. We went to get Wolfy from work and headed to the hospital to see him.
We went into the hospital room, I saw my aunt holding his hand. He was about an hour gone by this point so he was still warm but I refused to touch him as I was scared of that at first. My little cousin, Jely, was sitting in the chair at the end of the bed, crying her eyes out. She was only fourteen, but she was so close to our grandfather. I went to give her a hug. Soon, the priest came in to give him a blessing, and everyone around me was crying. I wasn't, my head just didn't process any of it that day.
23rd December 2018
It was my grandfather's wake. It was grim to see him lying in a coffin, unable to move as he wasn't there. The local priest came in about two hours after I had arrived. My aunt, Guinea, started breaking down before the prayer service. I felt pity, she was the oldest out of the children of my grandparents, so she would definitely find it the hardest. My dad Eric was the youngest but the only male in his family, so I assume he would find it just as hard as her.
Guinea, my uncle by marriage, Ash and myself sat in the kitchen with a few others while everyone else was in the living room for the prayer service. Guinea started cursing under her breath and Ash looked at me. "She said a bad word!". I couldn't help but giggle. I stayed with her for the rest of the service, stroking her hand and telling her it was ok to cry and show emotion and that she was strong by doing so. Great advice from someone who just experienced losing someone for the first time. We went home once the prayer service was done. I had a rough sleep that night, dreading what was to come the next morning...
24th December 2018
Why was I dreading today? It's Christmas Eve, for crying out loud! I had to wake up at seven in the morning on Christmas Eve, out of all days, for my grandfather's funeral. I have to admit, this whole process was going by very quickly, due to the time of year of course. We went back to where we had the wake, to say one final goodbye before he was brought to the church. I cried at that final prayer service, as the reality of the situation finally sank in for me. My cousin, Gavin was also crying beside me, so I offered him my tissue to use to try his eyes. "Thanks." he replied. For the first time since his death, I kissed Emory on the forehead. He was stone cold by this point, which chilled me to the bone. The funeral car was outside, ready to take the coffin to the church.
Now that line I used at the beginning, it was for a reason. It was true. Everyone was crying. Everyone was hurt. I had been tasked with reading a prayer of the faithful. However, Maddie was meant to read it originally so the priest called out her name instead of mine. I read mine as clearly as I could without breaking down.
"We pray for the family of Granddad. For Nana, for his adoring children and grandchildren, that our sorrow may be lessened and that the emptiness can be filled with the love of God.
Lord hear us."
"Lord graciously hear us." The church replied in unison.
The real highlight was Maddie singing. I looked up to her for singing. She sang our grandfather's favourite song, 'Danny Boy'. I could hear my mum next to me breaking down in tears before she even started singing, which caused tears to arise in me. As we were walking out of the church, Maddie was still singing away while we were all in tears. Maddie came out once she was finished her song and I hugged her and said she was amazing. She broke down once she reached my father, as he knew how much it meant to her.
At the burial site, his coffin was lowered into the grave. I kept my head bowed once I saw my grandmother Jay breaking down in tears. She was so strong and I barely saw her cry up until this point. My father had to say the final words before we left. He choked up near the end and once he was done, me and Wolfy went over and hugged him. We then threw our roses on his coffin, like tradition has it, and we left the graveyard. Beforehand, I stood with my cousin, Gavin, once again was we looked at the cross on his grave. It read:
'Emory O'C. 22nd December 2018, he will be missed.'
"It's pretty grim huh?", I asked him. He nodded.
Later on...
We were all at the bar, celebrating our dear loved one's life when I got a text from my best friend, Marco.
"Sorry I couldn't make it to the funeral, I didn't know it was today."
"It's ok. Do you want to come up to the bar for a while?"
"Sure, I'll be up in half an hour, but I'll have to leave at half three."
Surely enough, he did turn up half an hour later. I hugged him tightly. I brought him up to the bar, where he gave his condolences to my father. My father thanked him and about a half hour later, me, Alfa and Marco went back to my house. Guinea and Ash dropped us off, as they were going home themselves. Me and Marco spent the rest of the day playing the play station until he had to go home.
I'm writing this now, unsure what lies ahead tomorrow for Christmas. It's my first Christmas without Emory in my life. Maybe I'll cry, maybe I'll be happy he isn't suffering. One thing I know for sure, I'll be spending it with the people I love, who are all feeling the same way as me.
-Snow
THE END!
And all through the church,
Everyone was crying,
Everyone was hurt...
Personally, I like that Christmas story. However, I don't think I can enjoy anything this Christmas. By the way, my name is Snow. I want to tell you about the tragedy before Christmas me and my family experienced.
17th December 2018
I was minding my own business, playing some games on my laptop when my father, Eric, knocked at my door. He was with my twin brother, Alfa. "Listen", my father started. "Your Grandfather Emory was taken into hospital today. The doctors said he won't live much longer and he most than likely won't make it out of the hospital alive.". My first concern was with my father. "Are you ok?", I asked with tears starting in my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." Me and Alfa went to give him a big hug. We continued with what we were doing beforehand, although that thought kept spinning around in my head. Was my grandfather to die before Christmas?
19th December 2018
After school, my father brought me, Alfa, my older brother, Wolfy and his girlfriend, Kim, to the hospital to visit my grandfather in what would later become his death bed. There was a few family members visiting him at the time so we had to wait in the seating room until we were allowed to see him. Before I even went into the room, I broke down in tears. Alfa was there to comfort me. "Hey, it's ok.", he said as he patted me on the back. It helped a small bit. Small being the key word.
We went into the room, which was a private room. I think Emory liked that a lot. There to greet us was my grandmother, Jay, who was Emory's wife. I went over and gave her a hug as I knew it was hard for her, it was her husband that was dying after all. They knew each other for more or less sixty years, first meeting when Jay was fifteen years old, while Emory was eighteen (if my maths is correct anyways). My grandfather was sleeping. He was covered in red patches, which I questioned my father about. "It's because he has no platelets in his blood. His blood isn't clotting so he's been on blood transfusions.", Eric explained. I hated seeing Emory like this and I could see Kim tearing up. I rubbed her arm and comforted her. Just as we were about to leave, my grandfather awoke. He was clearly not with anything as Jay had to explain to him who was there. After doing so, I waved at my grandfather, and he waved back. Little did I know that would be the last time I saw him alive...
22nd December 2018
I was about to get a shower around five o'clock when my mother, Ally called me and Alfa down the stairs. I had a bad feeling as my oldest sibling, Maddie asked her if we should cancel the take out. Maddie would never cancel food unless it was important! I was on the top of the stair case when I saw both of them at the kitchen door. "Is everything ok?", I asked, but I already had a bad feeling about this. Maddie was in tears, while my mother looked as if she was about to break down in tears. "Your father called. Your grandfather passed away at half four today."
I was in complete shock. Sure I expected him to pass on, bone cancer isn't really something you recover from (or cancer in general) but this soon? I went to hug both of them. I ran upstairs in tears to tell Alfa the news, as he didn't hear my mother calling him. My father came home and we all gave him a big hug, one of the biggest I had given anyone. He had just lost his father. I felt horrible for him, rather than for myself. We went to get Wolfy from work and headed to the hospital to see him.
We went into the hospital room, I saw my aunt holding his hand. He was about an hour gone by this point so he was still warm but I refused to touch him as I was scared of that at first. My little cousin, Jely, was sitting in the chair at the end of the bed, crying her eyes out. She was only fourteen, but she was so close to our grandfather. I went to give her a hug. Soon, the priest came in to give him a blessing, and everyone around me was crying. I wasn't, my head just didn't process any of it that day.
23rd December 2018
It was my grandfather's wake. It was grim to see him lying in a coffin, unable to move as he wasn't there. The local priest came in about two hours after I had arrived. My aunt, Guinea, started breaking down before the prayer service. I felt pity, she was the oldest out of the children of my grandparents, so she would definitely find it the hardest. My dad Eric was the youngest but the only male in his family, so I assume he would find it just as hard as her.
Guinea, my uncle by marriage, Ash and myself sat in the kitchen with a few others while everyone else was in the living room for the prayer service. Guinea started cursing under her breath and Ash looked at me. "She said a bad word!". I couldn't help but giggle. I stayed with her for the rest of the service, stroking her hand and telling her it was ok to cry and show emotion and that she was strong by doing so. Great advice from someone who just experienced losing someone for the first time. We went home once the prayer service was done. I had a rough sleep that night, dreading what was to come the next morning...
24th December 2018
Why was I dreading today? It's Christmas Eve, for crying out loud! I had to wake up at seven in the morning on Christmas Eve, out of all days, for my grandfather's funeral. I have to admit, this whole process was going by very quickly, due to the time of year of course. We went back to where we had the wake, to say one final goodbye before he was brought to the church. I cried at that final prayer service, as the reality of the situation finally sank in for me. My cousin, Gavin was also crying beside me, so I offered him my tissue to use to try his eyes. "Thanks." he replied. For the first time since his death, I kissed Emory on the forehead. He was stone cold by this point, which chilled me to the bone. The funeral car was outside, ready to take the coffin to the church.
Now that line I used at the beginning, it was for a reason. It was true. Everyone was crying. Everyone was hurt. I had been tasked with reading a prayer of the faithful. However, Maddie was meant to read it originally so the priest called out her name instead of mine. I read mine as clearly as I could without breaking down.
"We pray for the family of Granddad. For Nana, for his adoring children and grandchildren, that our sorrow may be lessened and that the emptiness can be filled with the love of God.
Lord hear us."
"Lord graciously hear us." The church replied in unison.
The real highlight was Maddie singing. I looked up to her for singing. She sang our grandfather's favourite song, 'Danny Boy'. I could hear my mum next to me breaking down in tears before she even started singing, which caused tears to arise in me. As we were walking out of the church, Maddie was still singing away while we were all in tears. Maddie came out once she was finished her song and I hugged her and said she was amazing. She broke down once she reached my father, as he knew how much it meant to her.
At the burial site, his coffin was lowered into the grave. I kept my head bowed once I saw my grandmother Jay breaking down in tears. She was so strong and I barely saw her cry up until this point. My father had to say the final words before we left. He choked up near the end and once he was done, me and Wolfy went over and hugged him. We then threw our roses on his coffin, like tradition has it, and we left the graveyard. Beforehand, I stood with my cousin, Gavin, once again was we looked at the cross on his grave. It read:
'Emory O'C. 22nd December 2018, he will be missed.'
"It's pretty grim huh?", I asked him. He nodded.
Later on...
We were all at the bar, celebrating our dear loved one's life when I got a text from my best friend, Marco.
"Sorry I couldn't make it to the funeral, I didn't know it was today."
"It's ok. Do you want to come up to the bar for a while?"
"Sure, I'll be up in half an hour, but I'll have to leave at half three."
Surely enough, he did turn up half an hour later. I hugged him tightly. I brought him up to the bar, where he gave his condolences to my father. My father thanked him and about a half hour later, me, Alfa and Marco went back to my house. Guinea and Ash dropped us off, as they were going home themselves. Me and Marco spent the rest of the day playing the play station until he had to go home.
I'm writing this now, unsure what lies ahead tomorrow for Christmas. It's my first Christmas without Emory in my life. Maybe I'll cry, maybe I'll be happy he isn't suffering. One thing I know for sure, I'll be spending it with the people I love, who are all feeling the same way as me.
-Snow
THE END!
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