On Thursday she fell and was unconscious. I heard her fall and she hit pretty hard. To everyone's surprise after a few hours at the hospital she was awake and was her normal happy/ornery self making jokes with the nurses. No broken bones apparently, no head injuries but she may have fractured some ribs. They said they might discharge her Friday which was even a bigger surprise. Unfortunately Friday morning her health took a turn for the worse, they suspect she may have had internal bleeding. She passed on Sunday, I wasn't present but she was surrounded by family members. It was nearly instant and she was complaining about me moving stuff in her cabinets right near the end.
She was a very a tough woman. One would think it may difficult to care for a 100 year old woman but she was fiercely independent and her mental capacity was still very good. When I first started caring for her she had fractured her coccyx and I had to help lift her out of bed into a sitting position. She was in a lot of pain every time she had to sit up or move around but forced herself to do it, that went on for at least 2 weeks before the major pain started to subside. Other than cooking, washing dishes or other things she couldn't do she cared for herself. She often even made herself breakfast despite my disapproval. I had lot of help from other family members. My Aunt in particular gave her showers, fixed her hair, her laundry and other things.
She may have been safer at an elderly home but she was happy which I think is far more important. I'm glad I was able to help make the end of her life happy but with no kids, no wife and being able to work from home I was able to do that. As a giant bonus I know how to make the world's best coleslaw, I know the secret ingredient and it's not written down anywhere.
Ruth C. 1918 - 2019
