My mom turned 81 years old near the middle of August. On the same day she wrote me and my sisters about her down the road preparations for entering hospice. It was sad for me to read the message and not a big surprise. My mom has good health and lives almost independently in an elderly community with warm weather year round.

A team of property managers lives in my mom’s community who help look after the residents. Sometimes my mom borrows her friends car to do local errands and for the most part rides an adult size electric trike that has a basket for holding the things she shops for when she’s out riding around.

My mom cooks for herself and is healthy and strong. And my mom is not as strong as she once was. My mom moves slower than she used to. That’s aging and it is good to age. My mom has a sharp memory and quick wit and her ability to communicate is not what it used to be. That’s aging and it’s good to age. My mom lives in her own apartment in the elderly community and enjoys socializing with the men and women in her community.

I hope my mom lives many more years in good health and strength. My mom has comforted people volunteering at hospices and talked about hospice for years. My mom asked that me and my sisters “pull the plug” when she gets to a point where she is in overwhelming pain or discomfort. She has made it clear to me and my sisters that she would rather have us “pull the plug” than to keep her living in a vegetative state.

My mom is alive and well and just got home a few days ago from traveling on her own over the summer visiting family and friends in Oregon and Vermont.

I wish I had more money to visit my mom more often. I live across the country from my mom and can take time off work and fly to visit her. It’s expensive to take time off work and to save money to travel across the country. Family is very important to me. I will always make time for my family to be there with them and to support them when they are in need.

When I visited my mom last year we went to the beach. It was so much fun. The water was warm and we both went swimming in the ocean. It was a great visit and good to be there.

My mom has told me and my sisters that when she passes away she wants to be cremated. The topic of death is serious and a topic I don’t often write about or talk about much. It’s good to write about the topic of death the more relevant it becomes.

Life is good. Life is precious. Hug your loved ones and tell them you love them while they are here.