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Random howls into the world

I’ve Been Quiet Lately. Thinking.

By August 13, 20188 Comments

Straight up. It has been a tough summer.

Three weeks ago, while I was on my annual beach vacation, my aunt, Tia Isa, collapsed.  Her legs had been weakening for a while, and now , at last, they stopped working just as she was being helped from the bathroom to her wheelchair. By the time I returned, she was also struggling with a deep cough I didn’t like. It rattled in her chest and made her wheeze. So, before I had unpacked a single thing, we drove to the hospital where we spent the next six days trying to stabilize her.

I’m ashamed to confess that for a good while I have nursed the fantasy that my aunt would simply go to sleep one night and not awaken.  I wanted a peaceful exit for a lady who has been so unfailingly kind and generous to her entire family over a lifetime. I wanted to spare her and me the fear and indignities that sometimes go hand-in-hand with a failing body.

But life isn’t fiction, even for a writer. And so, in the last few weeks, as I’ve canceled engagements and changed diapers and stared at the ceiling all night, I’ve had to face what’s really ahead.

Luckily, there is not a crisis I’ve had where the kindness of people hasn’t shone through.  Texts and supportive emails have come from the few people who know what’s happening.  Folks like Lin Oliver have graciously allowed me to cancel appearances that had been planned months ago. My husband and children stepped up in every way – beyond what I ever imagined. And most important, my Tía Isa and I have had the privacy to talk about what she really wants with regard to palliative care.

I am writing this from Maine, hours away from tia Isa, where I am a guest author of Island Readers and Writers. When it was time to decide whether to travel to Acadia National Park this week to work with children at the Blueberry Harvest School, I wavered. But as Tía finally stabilized a bit, my family, including Tia Isa herself, were adamant. Go. Rest.  We’ve got this.

Possibly the best gift came from my middle daughter, Sandra, who put me on the plane with a book in hand. It’s Being Mortal  by Dr. Atul Gawande (Thorndike Press, 2014), which she’s reading for her nursing program at VCU. How do we help the people we love exert control over this last act of their lives? How can we help them not necessarily lengthen their lives, but instead live the days that remain in a way that has meaning to them?  Using both research and personal story, it describes the history of how we have managed –or failed to manage– end-of-life care. Dr. Gawande draws the complexities, from finances to the actual burden on family members , and also offers alternatives to how we help people make decisions about their last days.

Here in Maine with Javier, I’ve read quietly, turning to this lovely book for solace. We’ve walked trails in Acadia National Park in contemplative silence and stared at the ocean, thinking about both his mom and Tía Isa. I’ve had the chance to behold nature at its most beautiful. I’ve thought a lot about love and family and death. I’ve given long hard thought to the irony of starting to lose Tía Isa in the weeks before I publish a book about having to lose someone we love.

And I’ve found a bit of peace with the uncertainty that’s ahead.

So, this morning, I’ll meet lovely students, young people at the beginning of everything . As often happens when I’m in schools, we’ll talk about how we write, about where stories come from, about the role of roots and family in our lives and in our work. At times, presentations lose their freshness for the author. We say the same things so often that we struggle to remember that it’s new for the audience who is hearing it.

But this time, the words won’t feel automatic. They’ll feel so deeply true because they come from the acceptance that loss is also part of love in the long game.

Tía Isa and I having lunch at the rehab center.

And so in this way, Tía Isa will be with me, today and, I hope, always.

Meg Medina

Author Meg Medina

I'm Meg Medina, author of libros for kids of all ages. I'm the 2019 Newbery medalist for Merci Suárez Changes Gears. I write strong girls, tough circumstances, and the connecting power of culture. Thanks for visiting my blog!

More posts by Meg Medina

Join the discussion 8 Comments

  • sherri hubbard says:

    I finished this journey with my father in law, last May. Your words capture it perfectly. I sat with him in Hospice and looked out the window at the glorious foliage and beautiful birds, and I wondered that everything could be so alive as death was near. Sending you so much love, Meg.

  • lilaqweaver says:

    Dearest Meg: So many of us identify with this passage of your journey. As usual, you’ve expressed it beautifully, with layers and nuances intact. My love and heartfelt care to you and Tía Isa.

  • Cindy Gino says:

    Beautifully written! I wish you love and joy on this journey. Hoping for the best for you and yours.

  • Dionna says:

    Meg….May days full of love and quiet moments thinking sustain you, your family and your beautiful Tía Isa.

  • beverlyjames says:

    Meg, I live in Florida and love your blog. I hope to meet you one day. Bendiciones a Tia Isa.

  • Sheilah Egan says:

    Sending warm thoughts of peace and understanding I had the pleasure of attending several conferences with you and was extremely impressed with your generous heart (as well as you writing). Your Tia was obviously important to you and I greatly admired your care for all of your family. You are the role model she showed the world — so she will always be with you, because you have her heart. I wish I could write with the grace that you do so that you could really know that you have reached my heart — to make me a better person
    With great affection from a distance,
    Sheilah Egan
    Formerly of the original A Likely Story in
    Alexandria VA
    And reviewer & editor for Children’s Literature
    And CLCD

  • Sending love and light to you and yours, dear Meg.Thank you for sharing this beautiful post.

  • Renee C McGrath says:

    Just walked this journey with my mom this past spring. She lived a long life. We had a wonderful relationship and I will miss her for the rest of my days. But watching my dad grieve is the hardest thing, almost harder than losing her. So glad you have had time to rest and reflect. Take good care.

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