Chapter 15
Jennie was 86 years old when she said her final goodbyes…
It was a cold winter evening in New York City. Dozens of people squeezed themselves in a hospital room, surrounding the bed that sat in the middle. The air was filled with an overwhelming sense of sadness as everyone tried to prepare themselves to say goodbye to one of their own.
“I’ll give you a few minutes to say goodbye”, the doctor said, before making her way out of the room. One by one, people stepped up to the hospital bed to hug the person laying there one last time, trying to come to terms with what was about to happen.
They all shared one last moment with her before stepping away until only Lisa was left. The 47-year-old woman looked down at her frail mother, laying on the bed, trying to hold her tears in. She wanted to be strong for her mother. “I’m not ready to say goodbye”, she admitted. Jennie was too weak to speak but she found her daughter’s hands, taking them into her own and squeezing them weakly. Lisa got the silent message. She wasn’t ready but Jennie was. She wanted to say something but words failed her. She leaned down and kissed her frail mother on the forehead one last time before stepping away, right into her husband’s embrace.
The doctor came back in. She was accustomed to the dark, depressing atmosphere. It came with her job but that never made it any easier. “It’s time.” Jennie took one last look at all the people surrounding her bed, accompanying her in her last moments. She looked at her daughter standing there with her husband and her three grandchildren. At all the friends she had made throughout the years from her foundation. At Jisoo, her oldest friend who had stayed by her side for so long. She managed one last smile at them before looking up at the ceiling. She knew death was supposed to be a scary thing but she only felt contentment. She was ready.
Memories of her long life flashed through her mind as she remembered all the people she met throughout her life. She remembered holding her daughter in her arms for the first time. Remembered Lisa's first birthday. Remembered welcoming her first grandchild, and all the ones that came after. All the teens she has met through the foundation. She remembered walking Lisa down the aisle. Remembered years filled with tears and loneliness, with happiness and laughter.
And somewhere, in the very back of her mind, she remembered faint laughter from long ago. She remembered her youth, remembered hours spent laughing in school, sending thousands of post-it notes filled with inside jokes understood only by two. Hundreds of movies watched in the old cinema. Remembered hundreds of nights spent laying around in bed, holding each other, remembered whispered conversations and longing looks. Remembered kind eyes and constant assurances. Remembered one girl’s kindness on her first day of school.
Jennie could feel herself slipping away, her eyes growing heavier. Darkness enveloped her vision as she closed her eyes for the final time, a small smile permanently etched upon her lips.
No words were spoken as everyone bowed their heads and cried, saying a final farewell to the person who had greatly impacted each and every one of their lives.