Hospice patient. Real Time. Real World. UPDATE: Noslot Gained His Wings Last Night. pg 11

Rest in Peace Fred.
Even though we have never interacted I have been following your story.
What a powerful and admirable person to journal and share your story. Very bittersweet to read news of your passing this morning.

I had a dream I was visiting with a very sick and dying man who I had never met last night. I woke up wondering who he could have been.

When I read that he passed this morning it all made sense. I think nthe man who I was visiting with and bringing gifts to in my dream last night was Fred.

Anybody else have a similar dream last night?

See you on the other side!



My dawn came, and at dusk I went.
My loved ones surround me, heaven sent.
My life I lived, learned and grew.
I will be missed by those I knew.
I must rest now, as tears are shed.
Try not to weep, for I am not dead.

Rest well fred.

You were blessed to have your sister in your life and she was blessed to have you in hers. Peace and love.

you can post them here and link it


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It would be nice to have a picnic or BBQ or something to celebrate Freds life & what he shared with us...but we all know that ain't gonna happen.

May I suggest we all take a moment tonight at sunset just to look and enjoy the beauty of it...in Freds honor...And say "THANKS FOR SHARING FRED".

Thank you Fred for your courage posting to your thread here.

I hope you are having a splendid time in the astral world and receive our good wishes and prayers for your well being.

Rest In Peace dear soul

I couldn't bring myself to comment on your thread but read every page of your courageous journey.

Thank you!

True for some, but not all. My father had to pay his nursing home costs out of pocket when he signed on with Hospice at the home.
No Hospice person mentioned to me or to him that it would bump him off Medicare's rehab in a nursing home benefit.

He died a few days later with me at his side.

Hospice billed him grandly for their intake interview, their only visit, and the nursing home stay costs became my mother's burden.

Medicare will not pay for Hospice and a rehab stay in a nursing home concurrently.

Unless this changed recently.....

Found a link, hope it clarifies.

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Forced to Choose: Nursing Home vs. Hospice

An older person, someone who will die within six months, leaves a hospital. Where does she go?

Almost a third of the time, according to a recent study from the University of California, San Francisco, records show she takes advantage of Medicare’s skilled-nursing facility benefit and enters a nursing home. But is that the best place for end-of-life care?

In terms of monitoring her vital signs and handling IVs — the round-the-clock nursing care that the skilled-nursing facility benefit is designed to provide — maybe so. But for treating end-of-life symptoms like pain and shortness of breath, for providing spiritual support for her and her family, for palliative care that helps her through the ultimate transition – hospice is the acknowledged expert.

She could receive hospice care, also covered by Medicare, while in the nursing home. But since Medicare only rarely reimburses for both hospice and the skilled-nursing facility benefit at the same time, this hypothetical patient and her family face a financial bind. If she opts for the hospice benefit, which does not include room and board at the nursing home, then she will be on the hook for hundreds of dollars a day to remain in the facility.

She could use the hospice benefit at home, of course. But, “we know these patients are medically complex,” said Katherine Aragon, lead author of the study in The Archives of Internal Medicine, and now a palliative care specialist at Lawrence General Hospital in Massachusetts. “And we know that taking care of someone near the end of life can be very demanding, hard for families to manage at home.” And that assumes the patient has a family or a home.

This was a wonderful thread and I admit I have been crying since page one having been through hospice with two people I loved in the last couple of years. Once I saw Fred's dog and his plants I was a water works. My dear friend who died last year had such a beautiful house and yard and her dog was constantly by her side. She had a ramp. She was in bed with oxygen most of the time and couldn't even walk out onto her terrace, which had a view of Malibu, basically. All the money in the world didn't change her situation, and all of her joy came from us being there with her and her dog - Brownie - a long haired dachshund. When she went downhill and had to be hospitalized we were not with her, and it just devastated me to think of the dog wondering where she was. When I was living with her and she would go to the doctor the dog sat by the door whining the entire time. She was inconsolable. Now I am crying again, but I have to say in the end days the pets are the real angels and I am glad Fred is free from pain but I cry for his wife and his dog and his plants... Sorry I didn't know him. I know TLDR

My father's 100% service connected disability paid for hospice. I'm sorry to hear of your troubles with it, beeches. :(

The average time on hospice is 17 days, although it can be quite lengthy in some cases. My Dad made it 16 days. The last 5 days he was pretty non-responsive.

Fred kept his ability to communicate very effectively and very deeply to the end.

Me either, and I'll admit I shed some tears (since someone else has).


Ya know, Noslot burrowed deep into our hearts so quickly, and you Only Me....he was there for you, and you for him. He was here for all of us.

And while some of us are feeling a little shocked at his going so soon, we have been so FORTUNATE that he did the bravest thing he could've done....he opened up to us here about one of the most intimate things that can happen to a human being. I know he has given me many moments of thought I would've had to have had later, when it might not have been as easy to think about it.

I am glad he's out of pain, but I too am going to miss his "voice."

I'm am so sorry that I saw this thread too late, to bid farewell to a fellow GLPer.

In memoriam....... Perhaps he's watching, RIP

Poems I wrote some time ago

Ethereal Persistence

A glorious and ethereal persistence,
Substantive yet elusive in nature
Shines as moonlight in your dreams.

Waste not a moment to seek its virtue,
Given as a gift to your everlasting soul,
Shadowing every step you may take.

I am not allowed to explain to your satisfaction
Because it lies beyond my comprehension,
But surely you have the power to touch it.

It resides as the dearest friend you have known.
Comforting and endearing with warmth and affection
To lead you home where you surely belong.

Before you close your weary eyes to sleep
Listen closely to the invisible whisper
That sweetly beckons you to seek perfection.

Yes I know it cannot be so in our lives,
But please do not turn from this melody
Gently calling to welcome you home.




Lost A Bit

Slipping away from focus
Those voluptuous visions
From too many decisions.

Living never gets easier
Just more question marks
No more frivolous larks.

Soon now the sun will set
As gravity grabs and tugs
And time irreverent shrugs.

Dance around the memories
In celebration of the song
But don't linger too long.

Catch your breath each day
Gather the wind in your soul
Seek that ever elusive goal.

Laugh as much as you can
Though you've lost a bit
And try not to pitch a fit.

Speak of a glorious farewell
Only to the one you know best
Upon achieving your quest.

Hear, hear!

Rest in peace

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Very touching and emotional thread.

Also, very brave posts by Noslot, sometimes when he was in a lot of pain.

RIP Noslot

I really wish I would have noticed this thread a few days ago. Thank you for sharing this with us all.

RIP

glad it was covered for your father... Medicare is tricky and is also often changing.

free-standing hospice sites work for some families. At-home for others.

sorry for the loss of your dad..... my father suffered blunt force trauma to the head (death certificate language) that caused him to bleed into his brain. On anticoagulants. Can you believe this, a fall from his recliner at home with my mother. Surgery was okay, marginally, but he never fully "came back". Wanted to care for him at my mother's house, but the promised home-health aides never showed up. We had the bed, oxygen, etc all set up. Thank God the nursing home took him in for the time he had left.

That so touched my heart center, lovey....thank you.


I just sat here and was thinking about what a light the world of people lost....but then a "light bulb" went off in my head and I thought,


"But he left us a blueprint, a road map to follow. He bred numerous ones to know....well, how to go with dignity. We too are going to be able to do that, show others the way, if given the chance, gratitude to him.

Noslot was a great person of service, and wherever his "heart" is, I hope he knows that, and he's swollen with contentment.

He left GLP - and the world - a better place.

Really proud of you guys too!
Thank you.

Agreed. Hospice is amazing.

Thank you for sharing. I'm glad Fred had some friends to share with, wonderful. I have been wanting to start a garden for those who have passed in my life for years. My dogs and my recently deceased Father deserve a memorial spot. Thanks. I'm inspired.

Amen, and I have such an appreciation for what you do. It takes a special person to do this as a profession.

Thank you. I will post my pictures later.

My favorite pm from him:

My goodness your words really touched my soul. Your Dad would be so very proud of you! I certainly am. Such wonderful gifts I've been given and so unexpected.

And yes I believe that my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has "fixes" prepared for us, but you know this. :)

Take gentle care.

Fred

The "fixes" he's referring to is in reference to when I told him my dad always fixed everything.

We will miss you, Fred, but we will meet again!

I want to tell you this; Death does not exist, if death did exist life would have ceased a long time ago, death as we know it is the relationship of the body to this earth, but life continues on forever.

What an amazing thread...

God's Speed

We exchanged 100's if not more pictures. I've only been in my home for 5 weeks. Everyone knows they want to make their place home as fast as they can. The outside is the most important to me as it was also Fred's.

I live outside regardless of the weather. Fred's garden is now known as Fredlandia. Included are pool deck pictures. I literally had nothing when I moved here. The only exception being three plants left by the previous owners. I'm trying to rehabilitate them now. I sure hope my link works. They are not in order but you will see I started from scratch. Fred really enjoyed this.

I named the Flamingos Fred, Freida, and Fernando. He loved that. Fred being the largest. They will be with me forever. :D I also inserted LED's for night viewing. ha ha It's really cool at night.


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Fred also collected pictures into his own album. Ones that were special to him. He put them on a loop and watched them on his t.v. in which he just got Apple T.V. I'm so glad he didn't place my picture in this collection or no one would be viewing this! lol I miss my mountain home and he did include those pictures. Oh well. For all to see.

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Welcome to Fredlandia!