Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It's been quite a while since I last updated this book.
This picture is from before quarantine cause I don't have any recent selfies to post. Since this I also cut my hair, which I haven't bothered to show yet either. I wanted to take the time to vent here.
I know a lot of y'all might not really care. But I'm going through a rough time right now, and since I don't have close friends, I wanted to vent to my Wattpad family. So here goes nothing:
My grandfather, who is called Poppy or Papa by his grandchildren, contracted COVID-19. He had the virus for somewhere between three or five weeks before he tested positive. He couldn't have been tested any sooner because at the time he did not meet the criteria to be tested. Since then, the guidelines for testing have changed.
My grandfather was in the hospital for a month. He would have a couple of days where it appeared that he was going to make it through this. And then the next day it would completely change to where he was staring death right in the face. He eventually caught pneumonia on top of COVID-19, which made it extremely hard for him to breathe.
On April 28, 2020, I woke up to the worst news imaginable. When I had woken up that day, my mother told me that the next day my grandfather was going to be taken off his oxygen and given some medicine to help make him comfortable. He was going to pass away.
Fast forward to the next day. We had to drive two hours to my grandmother's house in Cook County (idk if any of y'all are from Illinois or would know where that is) to say our final farewell to my grandfather.
On April 29, 2020, at around 3:00 pm (central time), my grandfather was read his final rights by the priest at the hospital. After the call ended, he was given his final meal. he had asked for salmon. A couple of his nurses took the time to make his dinner for him. His final meal had consisted of salmon, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. The nurses were also kind enough to get him desert. He had three bundt cakes. The nurses also got him two stuffed animals, which he had named after two of his dogs, and a nestle crunch bar.
We weren't supposed to have another zoom call with him after he ate. After he was given his final rights by the priest, the next time we were supposed to hear anything was when the hospital called to say he had finally passed. His doctors allowed for another call because he was one the of longest residents that they had in the isolation unit at Christ Hospital, and they knew how hard he had fought.
We were beyond grateful that we got to talk to him one last time. It was at this time that my grandfather's doctor took the time to explain everything to us. She had said that the virus had attacked his lungs severely and that most of his lungs had become scar tissue. If we were to be sent home on oxygen, he would need to have 200% oxygen to keep him breathing because of how badly damaged his lungs were. If he were to be sent home, it would have been fatal because his lungs simply could not handle it. She also said that it was my grandfather wish to end things the way that he did. He was of sound mind and he was very clear of his wishes.
At around 6:30 pm (central time) my grandfather was sedated and he was taken off his oxygen. It took three doses of the medicine for him to start to fall into a medically induced coma. Once he was completely knocked out the doctor removed his oxygen. His oxygen level dropped 20-30% immediately following his oxygen tubing being removed.
All of his children were there (except his oldest daughter, who is my dad's biological sister. That's a whole lot of family drama that I don't wanna get into lol). All of his grandchildren were there. He even got to say his final farewell to his dog. Before he was sedated the doctors were even telling him how much they cared about him and how much of an honor it was to treat him. He put other patients before himself. He was given the opportunity to be put on a ventilator and he said no. He said that he lived a full life, and accomplished everything he wanted to accomplish in his life, so he wanted the hospital to give the ventilator to some one else that needed it more. That's the kind of man he was. He is one of the greatest people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.
Three hours later, at 9:32 pm (central time) he passed away peacefully. We got to see him in his final moments on a zoom call. I would have given anything to give him a hug one more time. He was so many things to so many different people.
Husband, Dad, Uncle, Grandfather, Brother, Great Uncle, Father in Law, and Great Grandfather. He would've met his first great grandchild at the end of May. He would've celebrated his fiftieth wedding anniversary in August. He would be celebrating his seventy-first birthday in June.
His funeral services are on being held on Tuesday. This whole experience has been so difficult and I'm glad that I've been able to lean on my family to get through it all. I'm so grateful that he and my grandmother adopted my dad. They were able to give him opportunities that he never had and shaped him into the man that he is today.
I hope you're resting easy up there, Poppy. I love you so much. I'm gonna try and make you proud❤️
