A dear friend, Dr. Charles Hersch, now passed, sent us the following letter that profoundly moved him. ” It is one of the most touching, beautiful and spiritual things I have ever read,” he said, “and I strongly believe it should be available to others.” The letter is from a 14 year old girl who stayed at her beloved, and terminally ill, grandfather’s bedside to the end. Two years later she wrote the following.
“Well, it’s been a couple of years since my grandfather passed away. When I think back, I wonder how I even went one year without him. Every time I think of him I feel like going to my room and crying forever and ever until I meet him again.
I don’t think I would ever be able to get through this without my “Papa dog.” Every time I miss him I start crying and squeezing my dog. This dog was a present that Papa gave me a long time ago when I was a baby. I had the rosary beads that my Papa used in the hospital. I also have an angel pin that my Aunt gave me on his funeral. I think over the years that after someone has lost someone, it doesn’t get easier, you just get more used to it and deal with it.
Well, that’s what I’m doing and I know he would be proud of me. It’s really sad because when I was younger, I felt really ugly and he was the only one that made me feel pretty. I am writing this down so in ten years I can read this and remember how much he meant to me. I never want to forget that, and I don’t think I could. When he first died I remember going downstairs and seeing everyone crying. Then they told me and I had the worst feeling inside like someone crushed my heart. I still feel the same way. If I think about it too much it gives me a headache. If I had one wish it would be for me to see him one more time over anything else. I don’t care what other wishes there were.
I feel really bad for my Nana. She must be so lonely now. I love her and would do anything for her. When Papa first died I was so depressed. I felt like I lost a part of me. When I really get upset, I say to myself , you know what, you’ll see him again. Even he said so. “Debbie, don’t worry, I’ll see you again.”
I feel like crying when I think about that because he told me that right after he found out the news (about his illness). It’s weird those were the saddest years of my life but also the happiest because I was with someone I love more than anything.”
