I also went over to my Mother's Saturday and took care of re-dressing the wound on her ankle and getting her lunch. My poor Mom. I don't know how she goes on and on with the pain she constantly has. She's a very strong woman!

For the next part, I need to go back to Thursday and preface it a bit. While my sister was in the hospital, she saw a very good friend of mine who was there visiting her brother. She said he had become very ill in Denver where he lives and was in the hospital there for a while, but they had released him. The day after she and her husband brought him home with them so she could take care of him, he relapsed and was admitted to the hospital here. Then on Friday my sister called me late in the afternoon to tell me that she had seen Corinne again, and she had told her that the doctors were only giving her brother 2 weeks to live. I was so shocked! I was planning on calling her all day Saturday, but knew she wouldn't be home until visiting hours were over, so I waited. Around 7:00 p.m., she was at my door in tears, needing someone to talk to. We sat out on my deck for at least a couple of hours talking. She said that even though the doctors had given him 2 weeks, she thought he would be very lucky to make it through to next weekend. And what, exactly, was wrong with him? Alcoholism. This young man (only 43) with a wife and 3 children, had been an alcoholic for 16 years. He got much worse after their mother died about 3 years ago. He was never the same after that. So anyway, we hugged goodbye, and she promised to keep me informed. My heart broke for her and her entire family. She has been an incredible friend to me, and I was wishing so much that I could do something to make this better for her.

She called last night (Sunday) -- almost exactly 24 hours after she had been here -- to tell me he had died. She was with him when he passed. The whole thing is so tragic, but the most unfortunate thing about it, in my opinion, is that he didn't even have enough time to come to terms with it, let alone make peace with the people in his life. During our conversation the night before, Corinne made the comment that he had done this to himself, which made it even worse. How very, very true.

Yet another example of how we cannot change even the people we love unless they want to change. And another example of why I hate drinking so much. I've seen firsthand many times how alcohol can ruin lives, families, careers, relationships, and kill -- whether it be by car accident, drunken brawls which turn deadly, or as in Corinne's brother's case, self-inflicted. And let's not forget about the staggering number of people who are beaten, battered and bruised at the hands of a person who has been drinking.

*sigh*

I'll stop now. It's depressing, plus I'll probably tick someone off and I really don't want to do that right now.

The 3 days ended better, though. My wonderful, amazing Hubby cooked hamburgers out on the grill just because I said I had been craving them lately. Isn't that sweet? :) They were absolutely yummy! :) Well, that's about it. If any of you are so inclined to send up prayers for Corinne and her family, it would be very much appreciated. And THANK YOU all for your prayers for my sister! I have no doubt they helped a great deal in her wonderful recovery!

Until next time ....

(((hugs)))

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