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Outskirts Press - William (Bill) Funnemark

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128 pages

English

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My head is spinning. I think I'm going to be sick. I think I need to go to the hospital, but I'm so dizzy I don't think I can walk. The last words my wife spoke to me before she slipped into a coma, never to wake up. It began as a wonderful vacation with friends but turned into a nightmare. A nightmare that changed my life in a way no one could have foreseen. Death has a way doing that. The experts try to help you in the aftermath but each of us go through the grieving process in our own way. My path to recovery is unique to me. Your path will be unique to you. No one can prepare you for this kind of journey, you must make your own path. I have read what some of the experts have to say and some of their advice was helpful. Some of their advice just didn't help at all. "Last Lunch" is my story of what it is like to lose your best friend, your wife, your lover, the mother of your children, and then pick up the pieces and go on living. It is a story of my faith in God and the love of family and friends. It's a story that has no ending. One day I just stopped writing.

Sujets

Santé et bien-être

Santé mentale & traumatisme

Vie de famille

Soutien psychologique et conseils familiaux

Personal Memoirs

Biography

Autobiography

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Publié par	Outskirts Press
Date de parution	26 juillet 2019
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781977216410
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0500€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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Last Lunch All Rights Reserved. Copyright © 2019 William (Bill) Funnemark v2.0
The opinions expressed in this manuscript are solely the opinions of the author and do not represent the opinions or thoughts of the publisher. The author has represented and warranted full ownership and/or legal right to publish all the materials in this book.
This book may not be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in whole or in part by any means, including graphic, electronic, or mechanical without the express written consent of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Outskirts Press, Inc. http://www.outskirtspress.com
ISBN: 978-1-9772-1641-0
Cover Photo © 2019 Bill Funnemark. All rights reserved - used with permission.
Outskirts Press and the "OP" logo are trademarks belonging to Outskirts Press, Inc.
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
I never planned to write a book. I never planned to be a widower. I never planned on a lot of things. God has a way of making a plan for me. God put Carol and me together and blessed us with a wonderful marriage. This union produced three amazing children. Each of our children found their own special soulmate just like Carol and I did. These marriages have produced nine amazing grandchildren. I would like to dedicate "Last Lunch" to my family. Some of you are mentioned in my book, while a few were not. I don’t want to slight anyone. So this is my family.
Carol Jean Leek Funnemark
Stephanie Lynne Funnemark Hamell and Pete Hamell Connor Patrick Hamell Daniel William Hamell Andrew Joseph Hamell
Mickolyn Elizabeth Funnemark Clapper and Trent Clapper Courtney Elizabeth Clapper William August Clapper Trice Funnemark Clapper
Chad William Funnemark and Laura Funnemark Lainey Elizabeth Funnemark Sophia Renee Funnemark Adalyn Lovey Funnemark
Love you Dad/Grandpa/Husband
T ABLE OF C ONTENTS
Last Lunch
In Conclusion
Epilogue
L AST L UNCH
" M Y HEAD is spinning. I think I’m going to be sick. I think I need to go to the hospital, but I’m so dizzy I don’t think I can walk." The last words my wife spoke to me before she slipped into a coma, never to wake up.
Carol and I were seniors in high school when we first dated, but we’d been friends for as long as I can remember. We went to elementary school together, went to the same church, and were from the same little town, Wesley, in north central Iowa. I had dated other girls, but at the time of Corwith-Wesley High School’s homecoming dance in December 1966, I was unattached. Carol had dated other boys too, but currently was also unattached. It was a mere accident that we even made it to the dance together. I originally had asked Judy to go to homecoming with me, but she turned me down. This was a crushing blow to my ego, but I survived to live another day. Unfortunately, I was still without a date. I decided to ask Carol to go with me, figuring she might go with me just as a friend. Little did I know she’d had her eye on me for some time. Thus, began a romance that lasted for nearly 50 years. A footnote on Judy, many years later, Carol had the gall to accuse me of trying to date Judy just because she had big boobs. I will neither confirm nor deny this accusation.
Carol worked at Algona Good Samaritan Care Center for thirty years, twenty-five as Director of Nursing Services. She retired on January 17, 2014, a Friday, and the following Monday she started working as a nurse consultant. I was still teaching high school science at the same school we’d attended many years before. Retirement for Carol was good. She set her own schedule and was able to travel when she wanted. Carol and I had developed unique travel arrangements over the previous few years and being retired made it even better. Every summer I scheduled a motorcycle trip and Carol would fly to the destination to meet me there. We’d have our vacation, she’d fly home and go back to work, and I would ride home…more or less.
I retired from teaching June 1, 2015. A week later we drove to Myrtle Beach, SC and met our friends Ed and Becky for a retirement vacation. None of us had ever been there, but Carol and I fell in love with the place. In March 2016, Carol and I revisited Myrtle Beach. I signed up to run the Myrtle Beach Marathon on the 5 th, and since we were both retired, we could take off as much time as we wanted. We really enjoyed the town and the resort, Ocean 22, that we stayed in. After a week in Myrtle Beach we drove to Orlando to spend a week with Stephanie and her family and then jaunted back to Iowa. Carol went back to her consulting work and I started a long-term subbing job at Baxter High School, teaching most of the science classes for the rest of the school year.
Carol and I spent a few more vacations together, but in October 2016 we planned another visit to Ocean 22 with Ed and Becky. Carol and I planned to drive to Texas to celebrate Connor’s birthday and then proceed to Myrtle Beach, spend a little over a week there and drive home. Even though Carol was retired and her consulting job was part-time, she just didn’t feel she could be gone that long. Her clients needed her. She informed me, "If I fly to Texas and then to Myrtle Beach and then back home, I can work an extra six days. This will more than pay for my flights."
She flew to Texas and I rode my motorcycle on a round-about route to Myrtle Beach. A week or so later, the four of us met at Ocean 22. Carol had injured her knee several weeks earlier and it was hard for her to walk so I had suggested we postpone our trip. I requested her to get an appointment to get her knee fixed, but she would not hear of it. We checked in on Saturday, October 15, 2016 for an expected eight-night stay. We lounged by the pool and on the beach, had fun dinners and generally a grand time. During our stay, Ed and I went golfing while Carol and Becky got manicures and pedicures. On Thursday we went to Moe Moon’s for lunch and had plans to attend a movie that night, enjoy a river cruise the next day and a sneak in a few more activities before we would leave for home.
The movie never happened. The river cruise was cancelled. The worst nightmare one could ever imagine began. At 1:15 P.M., October 20, 2016, life changed forever. My high school sweetheart, as I had known her for over fifty years, left me.
My children suggested I set up a Caring Bridge page, to inform our friends and family of Carol’s status. They weren’t sure if I’d have the mental and emotional energy to respond to the countless emails and text messages. I was in a daze just trying to understand what was happening and Caring Bridge seemed like a logical thing to do. My girls helped me set it up and I wrote regular posts. I am sharing my words from that online journal, as well as private thoughts only made known to the closest of Carol’s friends and family. In a few places I have included posts or letters from our children or other friends, but most of this is my words, my thoughts and my anguish. I have changed the names of a few individuals in this book out of respect for their privacy.
I don’t remember how I informed my children, Stephanie, Mickolyn and Chad, that their mom’s life was in a precarious and fragile state. As best I can remember, this is what transpired. 1:20 P.M. while on the way to the hospital, I text my kids, "Something happened to Mom at lunch. She kind of passed out at the restaurant. She is on her way to the hospital via ambulance right now." I didn’t know if it was serious or not, thinking it was maybe just food poisoning. From the ER, I text them that it’s very serious, but I didn’t have any details. Chad called me, and I told him that if he didn’t fly to Myrtle Beach immediately, Mom may not be alive when he got here. Mickolyn called wondering what was going on. She said she would come as soon as she could, but I told her that Mom may not be alive when she gets here. After the second message, Steph left work, went home and packed.
I don’t remember talking to any of them. I don’t remember sending a text message. I just remember sitting in a little room by myself with no tissues, just wondering what had just happened.
Day 1 The Beginning 10/20/2016
Carol and I were on a little fall vacation with our dear friends Ed and Becky in Myrtle Beach, SC. Thursday noon we ate lunch at a little restaurant on the boardwalk. We had just finished lunch and were just sitting there visiting when Carol complained of being really dizzy and nauseous. It soon became apparent that this was something very serious as she passed out. EMS arrived and took her to the hospital in Myrtle Beach where she was diagnosed with a serious bleed in her cerebellum. Carol is on life support systems and under sedation. She has not regained consciousness since we left the restaurant. She is listed as stable, but very critical.
What just happened? One-minute Carol, Ed, Becky and I are enjoying lunch beside the beach and the next Carol is very sick. It all happened so quickly. She is dizzy, then begins to vomit. She says, "I think I need to go to the hospital, but I’m so dizzy I don’t think I can walk," and she never speaks again. She’s unconscious. There is another restaurant patron, a nurse, standing there trying to take Carol’s vital signs and reporting them to the manager, who in turn is relaying them to the 911 operator. The paramedics and ambulance arrive in what seems like hours, but is really only minutes, and very quickly have her loaded on a gurney and are taking her away. One of the EMT’s ask me for her license, tells us where they are taking Carol and they leave. Ed, Becky and I follow in their car and arrive at Grand Strand Emergency Room approximately 20 minutes later. When I arrive, I ask at the desk about Carol, but they have no record of her yet. The lady tells me to just have a seat and they will get me in a few minutes. An eternity passes, and I ask again about Carol’s condition. The receptionist calls someo