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| My Papa and I (1987) |
My Papa was a good man, My Papa, My Papa, That says it all because he was mine.
He loved me like his own, he never saw me any different, for that I'm eternally grateful.
It's been almost 6 months since he stepped in to paradise with our Lord and Savior.
I haven't really talked about his death in great detail because it has been so hard, but I've read that writing it out helps, so here it goes....
My Papa was diagnosed with Stage II Prostate Cancer in February 2012.
He was very private about his treatment he never let on how bad he was really feeling. If you ever asked him he would say the doctors are taking care of it or I'm just tired.
Do you know while battling cancer he never stopped working? He would take his lunch break to get his hormone therapy(which is a kind of chemo) and radiation therapy.
I could give you all the details of his treatment over the next 2 years but truthfully I don't really know them then because like I said he was very private about it all, but after his death I read up on the treatments of prostate cancer and realized just how bad the cancer was from the very beginning.
I do know that he was hospitalized a total of 3 times, 2 emergency room visit's (that didn't turn into hospital stays) during one of the ER visit they informed him that he has a 2 inch tumor on his L7 Rib and to see his oncologist. It was later discovered that the cancer had spreed. Radiation started again, during this time he started having lower back pain, being the hard headed man he was he thought it was his kidney's or old age back pain.
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| July 7th 2014 Papa with my family and sister Taryn. |
He was hospitalized July for the pain, it was then they found that the cancer has moved into his bones. During his two week stay at Willowbrook Methodist Hospital he was moved to Methodist in the Medical Center of Houston for bleeding on the brain.
I split my time between Papa and the girls. Sometimes I would even bring my youngest with me. Days with the girls and afternoons into the wee hours of the mornings with Papa.
I was there the night he accepted Christ. I always thought the most defining moments in my life where my wedding day and birth of my girls but I would have to say that this one trumps them all. Leading Papa to Christ on July 15 ,2014 at 10pm was really the most important day in my life. He was in so much pain (the night was always the worst for him)and yelling and crying for the nurse to give him his pain meds.When in walked a Chaplin (his name was Kevin, if I ever meet this man again I will let him know what an amazing impacted he had on our family)and as I'm trying to clam Papa and tell him that the nurse is getting his pain med's Kevin take his hand and just talks with him. Papa asked " Who are you?" Kevin. "I'm the Chaplin an I just came bye to see if you needed anything" Papa " Well preacher man you sure did walk into the wrong room because I need a whole lot of help." Kevin held Papa's hand for over an hour, when he was about to leave he ask "Mr.Weeks are you a man of faith?" Papa "Well I would like to be, but I just wasn't raised in the church and once I get out of the hospital I need to get my life right and start going to a church, Camie lives on the other side of town from me so I will have to find a church close to me." Thats when I stepped in. "Papa you know that you don't have to wait to get your life right to be a man of faith? God gave us Jesus to make our life right, he gave us GRACE, it freely undeserved love, all you have to do is expect what Christ did for you and me on the cross and start living for him." I want to do that, how do I do that Camie? Right now Papa you pray for Jesus to come into your life, to forgive you for sins and that you want and need to start living for him. Help me Camie. I lead Papa in a prayer. Dear Heavenly Father Thank you for your Son Jesus Christ and what he did for us on the Cross. I want to live for you from this point one. Thank you for Grace, for loving me and forgiving me when I don't deserve it. (Papa said Amen after every word I spoke). After we finished praying Papa took a deep breath and closed his eyes and slept the most soundly I had seen him sleep the entire time he was in the hospital. I thanked Kevin over and over again for being there and opening the window for this to happen, I even apologized for jumping through the window and taking over. I just had been waiting for so long for the to happen, something came over me that told me take the chance you have been given. I called my sister and told her the good news and we cry tears of joy together.
Little did we know that a week later we both would cry tears of sorrow for him. Papa died with my sister Taryn and I by his side Tuesday July 22, 2014 at 11:37 am in the same bed he accepted Christ.
I just can't seem to find the words I've been trying to finish this post for 6 months ... I miss him so much...
Tuesday January 13, 2015 would have been his 59th Birthday I plan to spend it celebrating his life with my family at his favorite Mexican Restaurant...
I was there the night he accepted Christ. I always thought the most defining moments in my life where my wedding day and birth of my girls but I would have to say that this one trumps them all. Leading Papa to Christ on July 15 ,2014 at 10pm was really the most important day in my life. He was in so much pain (the night was always the worst for him)and yelling and crying for the nurse to give him his pain meds.When in walked a Chaplin (his name was Kevin, if I ever meet this man again I will let him know what an amazing impacted he had on our family)and as I'm trying to clam Papa and tell him that the nurse is getting his pain med's Kevin take his hand and just talks with him. Papa asked " Who are you?" Kevin. "I'm the Chaplin an I just came bye to see if you needed anything" Papa " Well preacher man you sure did walk into the wrong room because I need a whole lot of help." Kevin held Papa's hand for over an hour, when he was about to leave he ask "Mr.Weeks are you a man of faith?" Papa "Well I would like to be, but I just wasn't raised in the church and once I get out of the hospital I need to get my life right and start going to a church, Camie lives on the other side of town from me so I will have to find a church close to me." Thats when I stepped in. "Papa you know that you don't have to wait to get your life right to be a man of faith? God gave us Jesus to make our life right, he gave us GRACE, it freely undeserved love, all you have to do is expect what Christ did for you and me on the cross and start living for him." I want to do that, how do I do that Camie? Right now Papa you pray for Jesus to come into your life, to forgive you for sins and that you want and need to start living for him. Help me Camie. I lead Papa in a prayer. Dear Heavenly Father Thank you for your Son Jesus Christ and what he did for us on the Cross. I want to live for you from this point one. Thank you for Grace, for loving me and forgiving me when I don't deserve it. (Papa said Amen after every word I spoke). After we finished praying Papa took a deep breath and closed his eyes and slept the most soundly I had seen him sleep the entire time he was in the hospital. I thanked Kevin over and over again for being there and opening the window for this to happen, I even apologized for jumping through the window and taking over. I just had been waiting for so long for the to happen, something came over me that told me take the chance you have been given. I called my sister and told her the good news and we cry tears of joy together.
Little did we know that a week later we both would cry tears of sorrow for him. Papa died with my sister Taryn and I by his side Tuesday July 22, 2014 at 11:37 am in the same bed he accepted Christ.
I just can't seem to find the words I've been trying to finish this post for 6 months ... I miss him so much...
Tuesday January 13, 2015 would have been his 59th Birthday I plan to spend it celebrating his life with my family at his favorite Mexican Restaurant...
