Two things struck me. One that she sent a text (which is such an odd way to share sad news), and two that I had no idea if/how I was going to be able to get back to sleep. It's not like I could share with everyone, since the house still slept. After about an hour, I was able rest again, so that was all good.
One of our boys, who's been a personal helper to this neighbor while he was still able to stay alone, suggested we tidy up his house in preparation for our neighbor's son to come into town. He'll likely stay over there. So we dusted and vacuumed, disinfected and swept leaves from the back steps. Just made the house seem welcoming. And one of our other boys is hurting really bad about it, so I got yard bags and tools out over there so he can clean up a bit tomorrow before he leaves for work. Physical labor helps when the heart hurts.
When there's a death of someone close, I feel purged. Sort of scoured clean. I prefer it to not be a surprise, and this wasn't, but still----isn't it still always a bit of a shock? I think so. Folks are supposed to live forever (in our small, human minds), and it's always startling when that's not the case. We get so used to the people who surround us.
