[Uncle Erik]

That's awful. There's no easy way to deal with it, either. You're doing the right thing by visiting. I hope you're calling and staying in touch as much as possible. All you can do is spend as much time with them as possible.

I've seen several relatives and close friends taken down by cancer. It's taken a few much-loved pets, as well.

 

[Spareribs]

Very tough but a part of life. It is very sad, if ya think about it. I haven't seen my dad in about a year but he's dying in a nursing home in California and I live on the east coast. Once in a while, I fly out to see him and I probably should go sometime soon but we are not close anymore.

The last time I heard, he was not consious and basically a vegetable. Seeing people deteriorate and getting closer to death is one of the saddest things. My cousin's son died from cancer. I can imagine seeing a child slowly die is probably the most heart breaking thing of all time. I can't think of anything worse. Devestating. But you just have to be there for support.

 

[socrates63]

My father-in-law passed in his mid-60s. He had been ill with cancer for about a year and we saw him deteriorate. But the time did give everyone a chance to prepare for the inevitable loss and cherish what time we did have with him.

I'm getting teary eyed just typing this. My first conversation (when I went over to introduce myself and ask for his daughter's hand) with him gave me the strength to set my life in a new direction, and I will never forget that.

It's been 8 years since his passing, but when I see women friends talk about their fathers, I can see the pain in my wife's eyes. Her father passed away a few months before she turned 26.