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She would call and ask, "what are you doing?"  I would

reply, "just watching TV."  "Do you mind if I come down

for coffee?"  Of, course not.  I was always ready for my

friend to come and have coffee, or sometimes lunch

with me. 

I would shampoo her hair, trim it, blow dry it, and curl

it.  As I did this, we caught up on the  latest news. 

Sometimes current events, often times sharing news

of someone we knew,  was ill.  We talked about our

kids.  Always a funny story about our grandchildren

to be shared. 

We would take our coffee and go into the living room,

she sat in my recliner, I would sit on the sofa next to

her.  We would have our Bible in our laps, waiting to

share if the Lord so prompted.  Often it would be a

situation we were discussing regarding world events,

and we would go to God's Word, maybe find a scripture

to fit the discussion.  Psalms was a great place to find

just what we needed, and we would read it, pray it,

and discuss it. 

We would pray for someone we heard was ill, or having

problems with their children.  Often times we prayed for

our own children or grandchildren.  A mother never quits

praying for her children or grandchildren.  But, two can

do a lot of good when they agree in prayer.

She worked, and sometimes at the end of the day, she

would stop by and we would eat our dinner together.

Our husbands worked out of town, so we were free to

eat at home or out at a restaurant.  She made me laugh.

Her sense of humor was the greatest.  Sometimes she

would call me and say, "It's me again, Margaret."  A

quote from Ray Stevens, the comedian.

She was ready to retire, her husband by this time was

coming back home, off the road as a salesman.  My

husband was returning home to work a couple of years

in the main office.  So, our time was becoming limited.

However, she always took time to call, as I did her,

nearly everyday.  Kept up with family events, etc.

When her retirement was nearing, her one desire was

to be free to go to Prayer meetings.   She always wanted

to do that more than anything.  Her retirement date was

set for January, but needing kidney dialysis was causing

her to retire sooner by just a few months.  She began her

dialysis in June after retiring, and it was a 3 times a week,

four hour ordeal.  She never complained.  She was a trooper.

Yet, if anyone had reason to, she did.  But, not my friend.

She was about 3 years into dialysis, she was getting tired.

Her husband was diagnosed with cancer.  He had his treatments.

They were sure they got it all.  She took care of him, drove him to

his visits to the doctor and radiation treatments.  All the while

never complaining.  He went to work part time, and this gave

her a break, but not from dialysis.  

One morning he was going to start his car, and slipped.  He

felt a pull in the groin.  So it was determined he needed some

therapy.  That should fix him up.  The therapy went on for weeks.

Still no sign of  getting better.  Finally after a bone scan, they

discovered he had cancer in his bones.  As he progressively

worsened and had to be hospitalized, she was with him in the

hospital caring for him for 40 days.  She would come home at

night, back the next morning, for her dialysis, and go sit with

him in his hospital room.  She worked in the hospital previously,

she knew the procedures of caring for a sick patient..  Check the

IV's, help him to the bathroom, etc.  All the while she was getting

her dialysis treatments.  Out of the 40 days, she missed one day

of being with him.  Then in the month of June, he went to be with

the Lord.  June 2007.

It was difficult for her, but she never complained about her loss.

She knew she had done all she could do.  (and more).  She was

lonely.  She was still driving herself in for dialysis.  We did have one

icy morning, my husband had to go in to the Doctor, and we took

her in as her car had to be left  there from the day before. She

was so independent.  She felt badly that he had to clean her car

off for her.  The ice was frozen solid all over the car. She was

more concerned about him, than herself.

Her visits to our home were becoming less and less.  She was

so tired.  On ocassion when she had go to the post office she

would call and say, "I am going to be out, are you going to be home?"

"Sure we are, come on down."  

Do you know we were best friends for 29 years.  Up to her last

visit here in our home, she always rang the doorbell.  Even though

I knew she was coming, the door was unlocked, she rang the door

bell.  I asked her once, "why do you ring the doorbell when I know

you are coming, and the door is unlocked?"  She said, "My mother

always told me never to just walk into someones home without 

knocking or ringing the  doorbell. " I never could break the habit,"

she replied.

One evening this past January, eight months after her husband died,

she called me.  She had been having horrible coughing fits for about

two weeks, and was unable to talk much.  She said, "I thought I would

call you in between my coughing fits."  We talked briefly.  I told her I

would see to her getting to her Doctors appointment the next morning.

She said , "I don't know if I feel like going."  This was so unlike her. She

never was one to ignore her heart, lungs and kidneys. I said, 'let me know

if you need me, okay?"  And we hung up.  This was 6:35 PM.

The next morning I thought of calling her at 9:30, but decided to take a

shower, and tried her at 10:30.  No answer.  I thought perhaps she

was showering.  Again at 11:30, I  tried reaching her again, still no

answer.  So, I thought, she must have had her sister come to take

her to the Doctor.  Each message I left on her machine was," Charlotte,

I am checking to see if you need me to take you to the Doctor."

Around 1:00 that afternoon, her son called.  As soon as I heard his voice,

I knew.  She was gone.  It turned out that she had spoken with me and

after me, her sister in-law that evening.  Her sister had begun trying to

reach her at 9:00 that evening.  No answer.  The next morning when her

sister didn't reach her they had her daughter in-law check on her, and

she was gone.  She passed away in her relciner,  her Bible on her lap,

her phone beside her, and the dog was lying beside her. 

It had always been her prayer to die with dignity.  She did.  I wonder if

she rang the doorbell.

                                                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dedicated to my best friend of 29 years who passed away January 30, '08.

GG