November 4, 2009

As we walked to the car, Maddie looked at me and said, "Grandpa gone." And I said, "Yes, honey. Grandpa is gone." Isabel piped in and said, "No more hurt. No sick." And I replied, "That's right. Grandpa has no more hurt."

Just a few moments earlier, we had been in my mom and dad's room at the nursing home. We had to pick up Dad's shoes, so we could deliver them to the funeral director. The girls had been looking curiously at Grandpa's empty bed, so I briefly explained to them that Grandpa was gone, that he was in heaven, and though we would miss him very, very much, we could be happy because Grandpa wasn't going to be sick anymore. The girls listened very intently, and I could almost see the wheels in their head spinning, but they didn't respond, and in the next moment, their attention was attracted by something else in the room. When it was time to go, we put on our coats, kissed and hugged Grandma, and headed out to the car. And that's when we had the above exchange.

My dad was 87 years old. Last Wednesday he played Bingo. One week later he was gone. It went very fast at the end, but it wasn't easy. Congestive heart failure is what finally got the best of him, but he put up a valiant fight to the very end. Eventually, he just got so tired, he couldn't go on.

I will always be thankful that we got in the car when we did on Sunday to make the drive to Wisconsin. We arrived at the nursing home at 9:00 p.m. When I entered my folks' room, my mom was sitting at my dad's bedside holding his hand. When she saw me, she awakened him. I leaned over so my face was right above his. When he opened his eyes and saw me, he smiled and said, "Pammy." I said, "Hi, Daddy! I love you so much." And he responded with the standard line that he's said to me my whole life. "I love you more." Then he closed his eyes and went back to sleep. He recognized me once more, early Monday afternoon. After that, though his eyes were often open, he never acknowledged anyone's presence again.

My dad, Frederick George Rennhack, Fritz to those who knew him, passed away shortly before 1:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 4. He waited until my mom was asleep and my brother, who was spending the night at the nursing home, had stepped out of the room. I will always be thankful for those few seconds I had with him on Sunday night. I will always be happy that his whole family was with him on his final day. I will never regret the hours I spent at his bedside on those last days, holding his hand while he struggled to breathe even though it was the hardest thing I've ever done. My dad wasn't always an easy man, but I loved him deeply, and he would have done, and often did do, anything for his family. I miss him so much. His funeral will take place on Saturday, November 7, at Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Columbus, Wisconsin.

http://www.zeidlerfuneralhome.com/html/obits/obituaries.asp?listing_id=143025