Post #16: New Road Ahead

Dear Everyone,

As you may imagine, the past two days have been quite difficult. Stunned shock and grief would be a good description, particularly for John. He has moments of sheer incredulousness that Anita is gone, half-expecting her to walk into the room any minute. It will take John some time to develop a new daily routine and new sense of normalcy.

So to aid him in that transition, I encourage everyone to gently keep John involved in social activities, both at his home and by going out. Be aware that, at the moment, he also needs time alone for quiet contemplation. Consequently, he may turn down invitations preferring to stay at home, but please don't get discouraged. John also needs a certain amount of pleasant distraction from his sorrow and to develop a new routine without Mother. He is doing fine relating with friends at the moment, is able to engage in conversation and even laughing. These moments are interspersed with moments of great sadness, but that is to be expected. So I think a slowly increasing frequency of lunch and dinner invitations, bridge games, trips to the dog-park, etc. will all help him over time.

John is going to The Desert Sun today to submit a picture and obituary. It will be published twice in the newspaper and I will put it in my next posting on this blogsite. There will be no funeral service, rather a memorial service will be planned for some date in the future. As for me, I will be here until March 30 at which time I will leave for San Francisco before flying home on April 3rd.

Melissa