Sandy emerges from a dip in the cold Pacific Ocean

We had an intense and beautiful trip to the Oregon coast. And this is so difficult to write… tears and waves of emotion have been pouring out of me for days now. Sandy’s health has declined dramatically in the past week. Every day brings another big step down this journey. She is not in pain, thankfully, but she is increasingly confused and having some cognitive changes. Her vision loss has increased and she has more difficulty walking and controlling her left side. But of course her fighting spirit keeps her going. She is running on about 2 hours of sleep a day. She doesn’t want to sleep through these last days. She has more energy than I do. She is still enjoying getting out to our Garden of Friendship, usually in the very early pre-dawn hours and watching the sunrise together. She spends a lot of time in her special places in our home - her favorite chair usually - looking at photos, her special jewelry, and books… and always playing music that she loves.  She is still strong-willed and wants everyone to know that they better visit her with their “Lance face” on - she doesn’t want any tears and puppy dog eyes around her. She is living these days, however few may remain, with her typical spirit and love of life. Today she is having a spa day treatment here at home from a couple of women friends. And loving every second of it. We also are saying farewell to our son Cameron who is going back to his home Hawaii with Sandy’s insistence. She wants him to get back to his own life after being here about a month. They have had a wonderful time together and a lot of great talks.

Thank you all again for the outpouring of love and support. It is helping to make this painful journey one with beautiful moments as well.

With a breaking heart,
Dan