Somewhere After the Now

We lost a very precious man over the weekend, Uncle Mike. Uncle Mike is my Dad's baby brother, and the last of five brothers from a family of nine siblings. He was the most adorable kind man, and he will be missed terribly.

Uncle Mike had been diagnosed with prostate cancer years ago, and typical treatment is a "wait-and-watch" approach, especially in elderly men, because prostate cancer is a slow-growing cancer. Unfortunately, the cancer invaded Uncle Mike's bladder, and a couple of years ago had to undergo the removal of the prostate and bladder which meant he had to wear a bag. This was so hard for him because Uncle Mike was always, always, always an active man who loved to hunt and fish and tinker in his "shop" in the garage. He and Aunt Dot would have been married 62 years on July 4th, and when I last spoke to him on Father's Day, he sounded really great. What we didn't know was that his lungs were apparently filling up with fluid and his body was starting to shut down his kidneys...he was 88 years old.

I am grateful that my cousins "shared" Uncle Mike and Aunt Dot with the rest of us who had lost our parents. I realized that my memories with Uncle Mike and Aunt Dot are longer in time than with my parents who never got to see my two kids. My kids are very saddened by the loss because they love Uncle Mike and Aunt Dot and always enjoyed talking with them, especially about the old days.

If there is truly a somewhere after the now, then I hope that Uncle Mike has a joyous reunion with my parents and his other siblings and parents and friends. I cannot imagine otherwise for such a wonderful soul. Love you, Uncle Mike.