Goodbye Nanay

my maternal grandmother, whom we called nanay, passed away in her sleep a little past midnight on wednesday. she had been confined in the hospital after coming down with a high fever the previous thursday, and had been showing signs of recovery despite being unconscious for several days. but our lord was kind, and took her painlessly and peacefully at the ripe, ripe old age of 94.

there are many other ways i've seen His kindness over the past few days. He also spared my mom from having to make any agonizing decisions over whether to keep her attached to all the medical equipment in the hospital in the hope of recovery, or simply to take her home and let the inevitable happen. i can say without a doubt He is truly wise, and makes the best decisions of all.

nanay has been one of the constants of my life, one of those that you think will never go away. she has lived with our family my -- and my sister's --- whole life.

this is the first time that i've faced a death in my own family. i was three when my dad died, so it was never really real for me.

there is much to say about nanay, and about the past few days, but i'll save that for when i get back. my sister and i flying home later tonight (after much wrestling with cebu pacific's insane ticketing system) to be with our mom, who is my biggest concern at this point. marlon will follow on a jetstar flight tomorrow morning. the funeral will be in my mom's home town of sta. cruz, laguna on sunday morning.

please say a prayer for nanay and our family. and when you do, please thank God for me -- for her long and full life, her peaceful and painless passing, and for the new angel who is now looking out for my family from a long-reserved, choice spot by His side.