re: This is the hardest thing I have ever been through.

I wish there were magic words to say to take the pain and loneliness away. My wife and I have been married 52 years, of course we have had some serious illnesses and I recently had a bad fall. We still have each other, but we have also had a cancer to get through, so sooner or later one of us will pass.

We talk about this frequently, we both say we don't want to be the one left behind. We look at old pictures and remember the ones we lost and we realize how lucky we are. Our children and grandchildren are all happy and healthy, but my sister recently lost a daughter, I don't know how she can bear it.

All we can do is to look around us and count the blessings we have, use the time we have left to be with loved ones. I have close friends who are standing on the same marker, we support each other and pray.