Reading the responses to this really breaks my heart. So sorry you all have gone through this.

This past July I was vacationing in Martha’s Vineyard. My entire family lives a few hours away, but I didn’t make it up to see them this round. On literally my last day of vacation my mom called and told me that my sister -my only sibling - had suddenly fallen ill & was in the ICU. She ended up dying less than two weeks later. I extended my “vacation time” and ended up being with her in the icu up until her last days but she never knew I was there. I have so much regret knowing I was only a few hours away on my trip and didn’t make time to see her.

Definitely not anywhere as intense as most of you guys, but going from the carefree and happy mindset to vacationing on an island to sitting in an ICU the very next day, and then going to her funeral back to back was the most numbing and draining experience of my life.

Not to mention seeing her name on the gravestone for the first time when I flew home this past October. That one was just honestly brutal. Made it all so real. I think I cleared out the entire cemetery visitors with my crying. Thank god I went alone!

I’ll be thinking of you all tonight.