tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post6448248050657683297..comments2024-03-28T10:20:26.849-05:00Comments on Review This Reviews!: Final Gifts Book ReviewSylvestermousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13690700963857028874noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-1048894505521310492019-10-21T16:18:48.882-05:002019-10-21T16:18:48.882-05:00I wish the same thing. Those nearing death often ...I wish the same thing. Those nearing death often see things we cannot see and communicate things we are not prepared to understand. I plan to buy an extra copy of both of the books I reviewed by Maggie Callanan so I may share them when I know of someone who could benefit from these critical lessons. And yes, people do die of broken hearts. I've seen it. Thank you for sharing about your Renaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-74925834341576167512019-10-21T15:51:32.670-05:002019-10-21T15:51:32.670-05:00Oh, how I wish I had read this book years ago when...Oh, how I wish I had read this book years ago when my mother was dying! I realized only in retrospect that some of the things she said to me during her final days that sounded like hallucinations were her way of preparing me for her death and also letting me know that she welcomed the opportunity to be reunited with my late father. (She died of a broken heart.) "Final Gifts" sounds likeMargaret Schindelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18159345369223670796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-61449682841479035372019-10-20T14:34:28.599-05:002019-10-20T14:34:28.599-05:00I do sense that you have carried a great deal this...I do sense that you have carried a great deal this year (in your heart and soul). The more loss we experience, it seems the more we seek to make sense of it all. Over the past three years I have had to face my own mortality. That was a whole new flip side of watching other loved ones transition from this life. You don't expect to have to face that until later in life. I suppose that is aRenaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-83365272475768599042019-10-19T23:08:36.348-05:002019-10-19T23:08:36.348-05:00This strikes such an emotional cord with me right ...This strikes such an emotional cord with me right now. It's been an unbelievable year of death and transition in our family. My heart is carrying a lot, and this book sounds like a peaceful choice. I'm watching myself lately, choosing my words carefully to make sure I'm not projecting my own exit. I understand though that those who are terminally ill are experiencing this from a Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11149500665711112840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-41841330903654098852019-10-18T13:52:07.085-05:002019-10-18T13:52:07.085-05:00Yes, that after insight can often be crystal clear...Yes, that after insight can often be crystal clear. Perhaps while we are in the thick of it emotions and exhaustion cloud our thinking. Clarity does not always walk hand in hand with the one who is weighed down by anticipatory grief (grieving what is to come). It is very interesting to read about how a dying person may speak cryptically with family, but then talk plainly with a nurse who asks Renaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-41873891419628828142019-10-18T12:27:21.239-05:002019-10-18T12:27:21.239-05:00This sounds like a fascinating and thoughtful and ...This sounds like a fascinating and thoughtful and insightful book. It is amazing the how the "cryptic" words, gestures become so clear - after. When in the proper reflective mood, I will bookmark this to read. The Savvy Agehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07978487341362233610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-9646689409148235472019-10-18T06:15:10.359-05:002019-10-18T06:15:10.359-05:00How beautiful that you provided what was needed fo...How beautiful that you provided what was needed for your Ex to feel deep peace at the end of his life on Earth. I can't imagine a greater gift. I do believe someone you dearly love will be there with you during your transition and that one day you will be the warm, welcoming guide. We are not alone in death and I believe in the afterlife. And no, I don't find your wish to be morbid. Renaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-32878037423628577022019-10-17T23:29:11.097-05:002019-10-17T23:29:11.097-05:00I hope that when it's my time to go that someo...I hope that when it's my time to go that someone will understand things I might say. I feel that someone I love who has already passed, will welcome me to the other side. Maybe my Mom or my Dad. Maybe my only sister. Or heck, maybe even my ex-husband, since he called for me for days before he died. Our daughters were there with him in Indiana and when he kept calling for me, they flew me in. Nancy Hardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01252067177396467839noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-17036847741678781572019-10-17T20:59:56.571-05:002019-10-17T20:59:56.571-05:00This is exactly the kind of story that would be fe...This is exactly the kind of story that would be featured in Final Gifts. You were very astute to recognize what your dad was really saying. Thank you for sharing this experience. It is my hope that this book will find its way into the right hands at the right time.Renaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-8312267295309960242019-10-17T20:47:41.514-05:002019-10-17T20:47:41.514-05:00There is so much about death that we don't kno...There is so much about death that we don't know. I remember my dad in his last days, all of a sudden finding the strength to get out of bed in order to tell my mother he needed to get on that plane. I knew then and tried to tell her, that he was on his way "home". She didn't believe me until he passed a couple of days later.....yes there is lots we need to pay attention to inOlivia Morris https://www.blogger.com/profile/00711607646097689874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-83208468466807751702019-10-17T16:30:14.535-05:002019-10-17T16:30:14.535-05:00Thank you for sharing about your family's expe...Thank you for sharing about your family's experiences. Those are momentous times and memories that truly remain current in the heart. One of the things I was taught in my first significant job as a young woman, working as a nurse's aide, was that patients often held on until Christmas, or an anniversary, or a birthday, or another important date. The first patient who died on my shift, Renaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-38299394668271001452019-10-17T12:29:30.168-05:002019-10-17T12:29:30.168-05:00I believe this is true, Diana. When my grandmother...I believe this is true, Diana. When my grandmother was dying, no one thought she would make it through Christmas. Yet she held on until January 21 and died on the exact day her husband had died 12 years earlier. I think she knew he was waiting for her and she had to wait until that day. <br /><br />My hubby had home Hospice his last 3 weeks and the staff who visited daily were a wonderful help toWednesday Elfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11125647693828663780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-6868335306423879962019-10-17T10:33:09.079-05:002019-10-17T10:33:09.079-05:00Often, family members have been present, but did n...Often, family members have been present, but did not understand what those messages meant. When the nurses delved deeper, and asked the family the right questions about the loved one's comments, it helped bring the dawning of understanding necessary to reduce the restlessness, or anxiety, the dying one was experiencing. I know the nurses were especially helpful for me when they shared what Renaissance Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04042573630039646414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1874262419752354657.post-77010049509000528522019-10-17T10:15:30.838-05:002019-10-17T10:15:30.838-05:00Very interesting! I would imagine in most cases, w...Very interesting! I would imagine in most cases, whatever is uttered would be caulked up to delirium and ignored, especially if the individual with the patient is not a family member. It is awesome that these nurses have learned to listen so they can share those last bits of communication with the family (if they are not there) that would be best be able to interpret them.Sylvestermousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13690700963857028874noreply@blogger.com