Days Gone By

This is the last picture of Gene and I.
Taken Thanksgiving 1996. There's Gene,
as always in a shirt with a statement.
Our grandson, Gregory, daughter Anna,
and me, Mommie Dearest.

I had no idea he was ill. In fact the following
week he played 18 holes of golf. Around
Christmas he seemed to have a bad cold
and was winded.

By New Year's he really looked sick. Like
any man he didn't want to go to a doctor.
But I insisted. He was immediately sent for
xrays. The doctor put it up on the viewing
screen and I nearly fell through the floor.
It was obvious he had lung cancer. One
lung was completely consumed and part
of the other was already shadowed. And he
was only complaining of being a little short
winded!

This was the first week of January. He died
February 16, 1997. It was all so fast and so
unbelievable.