Time with Pam

A very close friend of mine, Carol, is very ill in North Carolina. I wish that I could be there to help with her children and to sit with her at this very difficult time. When Pam was diagnosed with Stage 4 ovarian cancer, I knew the time was going to be short. So I decided that I would spend as much time with her as I could. I tried to get up there once a week. I would go up mid morning and stay till dinner. Pam sometimes (in the beginning) said that I must have better things to do than to sit with her all day. I said that spending time with her was very relaxing and peaceful for me and I enjoyed her company. I also knoew that if I wasn't seeing Pam, I would be running around doing stuff that, in the end, doesn't really matter. My time with Pam was (given the circumstances) very enjoyable. One day we watched a show about buying wedding dresses, which led us into talking about getting ours. Then Pam disappeared out of the bedroom and came back in with her wedding dress, to show me how beautiful it was. She said "Do you think Steph would ever wear it?" Being the totally honest person that I am, I said with a little updating, it would be great. That made her very happy. Pam's favorite show was "Jon and Kate + 8". We watched and marveled at how Kate could handle 8 children and still seem so organized. Pam would talk about how much work it was to raise 3 children. Pam seemed to like shows about real people in real situations, she always was sympathetic to people with problems. I think it took her mind off her own issues. Pam also always made sure that there was a good dessert to have in mid-afternoon. We had ice cream, brownies, chocolate cake.. delicious!
As time went on, the conversations got more serious and teary, but still good. I am blessed to have spent the days I did with Pammie. I have learned how important it is to be there when things are good and when things are not.