Sent Home to Die

Sent Home to Die

Sarah Johnson spent her entire life taking care of people — the six children she raised, mostly alone, and the hospital patients she served in her 25 years as a nurse. But at 86, she was the one who needed care. She was thin and frail and had COVID-19. Her son Rodney...
Down The Rabbit Hole Into Caregiverland

Down The Rabbit Hole Into Caregiverland

It’s a complete 180 learning curve going from journalist / author / daughter to caregiver / nurse / nursing aide / doctor / mother. And what a challenge it can be. Every morning, we have an aide who manages Mom’s hygiene, bathing her and washes her hair when she wants...
The Condition that Shielded My Grandfather From Heartbreak

The Condition that Shielded My Grandfather From Heartbreak

By the first week of July, a nurse called and said, Things are progressing. This seemed like misleading terminology, but I understood what she meant. Later, I flipped through the manual the hospice team had given us. Inside, it described how a body prepared for death,...
Saying Goodbye, The Right Way

Saying Goodbye, The Right Way

Ediccia wanted to be remembered as someone who didn’t give up. Chuck said some of his favorite times were playing baseball with his brothers. Joe said he was the luckiest man in the world. Abel summed it up this way: “You have a one-way ticket. Don’t waste it!” They...
In Difficult Cases, ‘Families Cannot Manage Death at Home’

Zen and the Art of Dying Well

It seems like my social media feeds are full of fundraisers to cure every disease known to humanity. Silicon Valley startups are trying to cure death itself. But there are others out there who are embracing death as an essential and beautiful part of the human...