Kahlua Night - Pete's Last Hurrah

This is one of those drafts that's been sitting, waiting for me to make some sense of the jumbled thoughts that I had jotted down. I've asked Gina, Georgette, Colleen and Bruce what they each remembered about this night, but no one could really say much, though to each of us it was a very poignant and memorable evening less than a week before Pete left us.

He had been in quite a bit of pain earlier in the day but was more comfortable as dinnertime rolled around. He was much more alert than he had been the past few days and said he felt like eating. He finished most of the meal Georgie and Gina had prepared for him and at some point in time said that he wanted a Kahlua milk shake. I honestly don't know who he told, but I remember being in the kitchen and texting my sister, who had gone to pick up something from Costco, to "stop at liquor store and get bottle Kahlua. Serious." She told me later that it was good that I had included the "serious" and that she got my message as she had just come out of Costco. She headed into the liquor store right next door. While she was getting that ingredient, I think it was Bruce who ran over to the grocery store to get the vanilla ice cream.

I remember someone tried to start the blender but it wouldn't work. It's not one of the appliances that we use very often and apparently the gears had just frozen, so we went with the food processor. People seemed to be busy with glasses and ice cream and Kahlua and I just kept fiddling with the blender, trying to get the blades to move and eventually they did.

I think it was Georgie who asked if I wanted a milkshake, but I just took some ice cream in a bowl, splashed some Kahlua over it and carried it into Pete's room. I remember Pete was sitting up in his hospital bed and I was surprised at how much he looked like his old self. Maybe I just didn't want to see the swelling or maybe it just wasn't as noticeable for some reason, I can't really say. Everyone was already seated, chatting and laughing, as I walked over and sat down in the last empty chair. Gina said she can't recall anything specific, but that Pete kept teasing her as he had so many times, in a loving, good natured brother-sister exchange. Georgie couldn't really recall anything specific, either, except that there was a sense of peace in the room. Bruce couldn't say much about the evening.

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It's been 5 years today that Pete lost his battle with sarcoma. I came here to read some of my unfinished drafts. It's been only 5 years, but  it seems such a long, long time ago. I miss him so much.