I wish I could say that Frank Ostaseski is a personal friend of mine. . .
and I’m not so sure that I could even call him a casual acquaintance;
well I did share the stage with him once in Denver, Colorado at a National Hospice and Palliative Care Conference and there was those two times I heard him speak after that. . .and he has responded to a few of my The Caring Catalyst blog posts but friends–no not friends–kindred spirits, well yes. A couple of years ago Frank wrote a book which has quickly become a standard in the field of end-of-life care
B U T
Frank, like you and me
is first and foremost,
H U M A N
with a pulse that beats
blood that flows
lungs that breathe
a brain that thinks
and a heart that’ll one day stop. . .
Frank’s almost did a couple of weeks ago when he suffered a Stroke.
He’s responded well and in fact one week from the time he suffered his stroke he returned back to his houseboat
During his days in the hospital, his wife, Vanda, set up an account on CARINGBRIDGE so she could let one and all know how he was doing by sending out messages that went viral. I particularly like her last post which just appeared a few days ago:
Journal entry by vanda marlow — BUCCATINI WITH LAMB SAUSAGE
Sometimes, being home is as simple as that- Frank’s favorite pasta dish from our local Italian, drenched in Parmesan, with his almost-4 year old Granddaughter holding his hand and leading the Meal Blessing. He had been craving this pasta in the hospital….along with movie watching and cosy blankie afternoons. Hopefully we can do the latter tomorrow, as somehow time accelerates AND stretches like taffy, and we found ourselves reaching the end of the day, both exhausted, in different ways.
Some truly sweet and connected moments, which I hope I won’t forget; eating Mimi’s farm strawberries and him sharing dreams he’d had in the night. His consciousness is so bright and alive. And then there can be the tired-ness of Little Mind, with its pushy efforts to order time and experience, efforts that make our world hang together here in Consensus Reality. But I am seeing in him the vast freedom of living in Infinite Time rather than Tick Tock time. The shining great heart of compassion that runs very clear in him……Oh and then there was the 90 minute unannounced visit from a Kaiser Home Help Nurse, which was one of the hell realms. It made buying a train ticket in India look simple by comparison.
And so another day ends. Marking one week since the stroke, and as we took an evening stroll down the dock, I felt re-arranged inside. Sitting on a bench, to provide ear rubs to a ginger cat, I realised that the future holds these small precious moments now that all the big plans have blown away.
Thank you for all the love that continues to pour towards us both. It is very humbling. I have begun to read these comments to him, and he gets very quiet and settled – your love is Cranial Sacral for the Soul.
Deep Bows
Vanda
No more words. . .
LOTS OF FEELINGS
and a sudden urge to have an endless plate of
BUCCATINI WITH LAMB SAUCE
. . .if you have any kind of appetite for living,
REALLY
DEEPLY
PASSIONATELY
s i m p l y
l i v i n g––
join me
Let’s eat and have our fill
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