The Things In Christine's Head

aftermath.

march 19th, 2017.

one day since my grandfather has passed.

we booked a ticket for my mother to go back to California. it has been a month since we went there for vacation.

my mom needed help deleting some photos for storage, and for five seconds, i saw a picture of my dead grandfather.

his eyes were closed, his mouth open. his tan skin was gone, just paleness.

my mom snatched her phone away from me and told me to eat breakfast.

last night, i had a dream where i saw my grandfather. the dream was silent, and all he did was sit next to me and smiled.

i woke up with tears in my eyes. my family was so lucky to see him one last time.

he was already sick, and so he had to go to a hospital. they wouldn't let him eat for two weeks.

yesterday, they let him, and so they called my aunt, who called my uncle to buy him food. when he bought the food, .....it just happened....

my grandfather called somebody, and the nurse who is supposed to take care of him heard his heart line slow down.

when she got to him, he was gone. his heart gave up immediately.

the whole family (besides my family) rushed to the hospital. my nine year old cousin was the only child there. she wasn't mortified or scared of seeing her dead grandfather.

she held his hand, hugged his body, and kissed his forehead, cheeks, and his hand.

it made everyone cry seeing a child do something heart wrenching like that.

my family is still trying to figure out why he died.

I could still remember the events of last night.

my uncle called my mom. they never really called, and i knew something was wrong.

"hello?"

there was a long pause. i knew right away, and my stomach dropped.

after the long pause, he kept saying um.

then he said: "dad."

my mom finally understood what he said. she broke down, and i stopped eating dinner.

all i could do i hug her, while she cried.

christine