Death

 Well where do I begin this I seen alot of death in my life.  The first funeral I went to Was my Great Grandma Gilliland and I went with my Grandma Sewell, Aunt Bessie.  My fondest Memories of Great Grandma Gilliland.  Her and Aunt Carol ran a diner in Deerfield and we were having family Christmas there and I asked her if we could open presents and she asked everyone and so we got to open Presents.   Then there was an Easter that Myself, Leonette, baby Kasey, cousin Jeff, Jason Gilliland took a picture at one of the booths in the Café.  Then they Shut it down and she moved to this apartment right behind our house we use to go up there and Great Grandma would let us get the mail.  She would be cracking pecans and they would watch Dallas.  I remember the day she died Aunt Carol called to our house stating that she couldn't wake up Grandma.  I miss her.  then working the nursing home it happens alot their don't remember too many for that be over 30 years ago.  Their was alot of friendships.  My aunt Carol was a lady that I admired she had lived with her mother Grandma Gilliland and worked the café with Grandma and she use to take us out back to gather the eggs from the chickens that was fun.  After Grandma Gilliland died Aunt Carol moved to the crawford estates and ironically lived in the same house my Grandmother Sewell would live in later on in life. The reason I started being a Volunteer was because of  Aunt carol she was at Moore-Few and i was going all the time and my father thought I should volunteer so I did.  In 1996 I was Older and got a job at Pizza Hut as a driver and I had this day off and it was July 19th and I was going to visit a teacher that lived in Moundville and I had this strangest feeling that I need to go see aunt Carol but I ignored it and that is something that I deal with to this day I should of went to see her I still went to see my teacher and on the way home I stopped by my Grandparents house and they wasn't home so I decided to go to Fort Scott it was a big trip for me because I decided to go by myself I thought what would be the harm so on my way back I went to see if my grand parents were home and they was and told me I should go home so I did.  When I got home they got mad at me because I was out of reach without letting them know where I was and then they told me she passed on so when she was ready to be seen at the funeral home I sat and talked to her She is one of the people I want to talk to because I have so much to tell her how much she made an Impact on my life.  But the down fall came on the day of the funeral I had to work right before the funeral which was a graveside service they said they only way I could get off is to quit.  I went and was late to work.   Between July 19th and October 1st 1996 my Grandmother Chesnut got cancer. October 1st I was a senior in High School and still working at the Hut I had that same feeling that I did back in July so I had to work at either 4 or 6 that day and so right after school I went to my grandparents house to visit my grandma she was on the verge and I saw her hugged her gave her a kiss on the cheek then went to work well later on that night my father called and said she was gone.  i'm so glad I got to see her.  3 years later my grandparents celebrated their 60 year anniversary and at that time I worked at the hospital and ever since my Grandfather Sewell had his stroke I was staying at grandmas at night for someone to be there with her.  I remembered the day he died they were all at the nursing home and he passed early morning of October 20th.  I called work at 6 i told them i wasn't going to be in because of it and they said it was fine.  Then as I see it as the Grandchild that was still living at home and single I got to take care of my grandmother she needed to go somewhere, go shopping and this and that I know there were more and more grandkids did stuff for her but I really enjoyed doing that and when my brother moved to springfield I use to go down there two or 3 days and Cory, Devin, Perry all stepped in and stayed the night.  She then moved to crawford estates and my wife, myself and Mother in law would do her cleaning and alot of odd jobs then in 2010 around easter she ordered Dibiatice shoes they came but were the wrong size so by the time the right side came in she was at Barone and the place that we got them said she couldn't get them because she was in the nursing home and I remember my mother went off and said she ordered them before she was in the nursing home and it was your mistake because you got the wrong size well let me tell you she got the shoes.  and every waking moment she had her shoes on in the nursing home she had to have her shoes on in the hospital she had to have them on. and on November 21st my mother called us because she was at Aunt Carols house and she was leaving us also so we went and she passed on that night.  She would go and wave at school busses when she lived at the crawford house well the day after she died I got some cardboard and wrote on it that grandma passed away and stood out there and held that sign up.  when we they went to set up the arrangements they told them to make sure shes burried in her shoes. and she was also there was a key that she always had to have with her when she left because her house key was on it she had to hold on too it.  Well we found a key to her appartment that we didn't turn in put it on her purse and burried it with her so she cold keep it handy.  there were a string around 2002 - 05 that Amandas family would go threw starting with her Uncle Melvin, then her uncle Terry, then her cousin Jason then her father in 2005 i went to all of those funerals I was sad very sad. Her dads was the most difficult and I got her threw it.  in 2014 we had two that I could of done with out the first one was around May 12th I worked at heartland for 5 1/2 years and was laid off there was that one person that always made me laugh and ended up being my best friends that Was Steven Huss Steven was a staple and always had something good to say.  Well cancer got him and I really miss him and they said if anyone wants to say something they could and that's what I said.   then comes May 19th 2014 the day my sister passed on.  I don't really want to talk much about that day because it still makes me so mad.  The day of the visitation and funeral their was over 750 people showed up.  You wonder how I know this its because they said they printed out 750 info on her to pass out and they ran out when it was time for the funeral they had to turn people away.  I miss her!  few years pass on still people die and more funerals to go to my Grandpa Chesnut died we just had a graveyard service and it was raining and he worked on the rail road for years and ironic a train went through it was touching.  then we lost my uncle Johnny, uncle Danny to cancer. did I tell you I hate cancer.  That will be a future blog.  then the other dreaded C word Covid alot of people died of it in 2021 it took my uncle Robb then two days after Christmas Myself, my mother, my father, Brother, and Brothers wife all got Covid.  mom went in to the hospital first and they had her on the ventalator dad came and knocked of the door saying they are calling all of the family to the hospital we got there this was Jan. 3rd 2022 so Dad, KC, Carol, Amanda, I went up I wasn't doing too good as I would stand up my O2 was bad so i went home that night and talked a long talk with my wife about what would happen if I was hospitalized with covid the next day sure enought I was hospitalized and I saw my mom as we were going to my room I blew her a kiss and they wheeled me over to my room a few hours later my father came in and said she was gone.  they held off for a week for the funeral so I could get out of the Hospital I did I made there.    

Final Words People Come and go in this world cherish each other because one day they won't and then you will be like why didn't I say that I love you or why didn't I hug them more you need to make sure you say stuff and let them know that you are thinking of them always.