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| Pauline and Nola--Eva's Wish Fulfilled |
My dad always knew my mother was the best thing in his life. That’s why I still remember the day he brought mother to our home unexpectedly.
“Your mom needs to talk to you about something serious. Is this a good time?”
“ It’s always a good time to talk to Mom,” I assured him.
“ I have bad news,” she said. “They say I have a brain tumor. Good thing I retired last year.” The news hit me like a red-hot poker through my heart. Mom had always been there for me when I needed her; it was now my turn to be there for her.
“We’ll fight it together!” I said. I had never been so grateful that I had chosen nursing as a career. “This nurse will be right beside you, through whatever treatments you choose.” One thing I learned in nursing was the patient always has the right to make decisions about their own body.
“Dr. Vaughn says he wants me to see an oncologist at Sutter Memorial Hospital in Sacramento. He talked with a doctor there who advised him I should start radiation treatment right away. What do you think?”
“It is certainly worth talking to the oncologist. You want to know what his expectations are for the treatment and what side effects it might produce. When you get all the information, it will be easier for you to decide if it sounds right for you.” I knew my mother trusted Dr. Vaughn’s opinion, and I knew he would suggest treatments; but he would let her make the final decisions.
I was grateful that Mom and I had the same family doctor, and that I was lucky enough to work with that very dedicated man. For the next three years, rarely a day went by that she didn’t call him on the phone at least once--sometimes to ask a question about her treatment, her disease or just to hear his reassuring voice.
The phone would ring, and he would answer, “ This is Neil Vaughn. Hello, Eve. How are you feeling today? No, you are not bothering me. If there is any way I can be of help, just let me know.”
Dr. Vaughn was very down-to-earth and always had time for his patients, their families and his co-workers. Not only was Mother talking to him daily, but I would also see him at work most nights. He’d often say, “How’re you coping, Nola? Anything I can do to help you or your mom or dad?”
“Thanks for asking Dr. Vaughn! Your caring is always appreciated.”
In the last year, after mom’s cancer had metastasized, we all knew she was terminal. Nine weeks before she died, she fell in her living room and broke her hip. “Life isn’t always a bed of roses,” she said. She was right about that. We headed to Sutter Davis Hospital.
I was fortunate enough to spend some time with her every day. I was now working part-time at night. I had four children at home, and I was lucky to have a very supportive husband. He’d take time off from work during the day when he could, and he would be home with the children every evening so I could spend time with mom.
“You go ahead, Honey, to the hospital; the kids and I will be fine. No, leave the dishes; we can handle those. It’s more important you spend time with your mom right now.”
During those last weeks, Mom spent a lot of time talking about Dad. “You’re going to have to find a wife for your dad; he’ll never make it on his own.” She knew he was strong, but she also knew she was his backbone.
It was Mom’s dying wish. I’m sure Mom was in heaven, helping us to find Pauline, dad’s second wife. Pauline was dad’s right arm for the next (and last) two years of his life.
Dad had contracted cancer a year before mother died. Pauline had buried her first husband after he had lost his battle with cancer, and she was there with us to bury my dad. Dad died happy. “I’m coming to join you in heaven, Eva.” he said the day he died.
She was the best thing in his life, and I’m sure she was there to greet him in heaven: “I’ve been waiting for you, Don.”
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