Goodbye Grandma Long

On Friday morning my life was rocked by major loss, my grandmother on my mom's side of the family, Stella Long. She had such an amazing personality and showed me so much love throughout my life. My grandmother had not been herself for around ten years because of a failing thyroid gland, which caused hair loss, a mental fog and myriad of other symptoms. She wouldn't leave the house or stay in contact with most of her family, this was difficult to watch but the love was always there. She finally began taking medication for her thyroid after taking a bad fall and breaking her hip in January of 2012. The fall however, forced her to go to the doctor which she had not done for close to 30 years. The time that followed her fall she underwent a metamorphosis physically and mentally, returning to her old self. Unfortunately, during her recovery it was discovered that she had two aortic aneurysms, that could burst at any moment. She decided that the risks of the extremely difficult surgery were far too great and opted out, firm in her decision, knowing fully the possible outcome.
The last few months were truly amazing though, we got her back, something that we never imagined possible. Whether or not these events were fate, I do not know but I do know I cherished the time we had.
She drew so much joy from giving to my family, she bought toys when I was little, payed for my clothes, funded Disney trips for us and most importantly gave us all love. My grandma taught me how incredible it feels to make other people happy. She was so kind and fun, everyone she met's life was better for it. My brothers and I gave her life meaning and she treated us so special, I will miss that so very much. There are a million different things I will miss, some huge, others very small but they all hurt so much. Death is just as natural a part of life as breathing but both can be so damn hard at times. Hold those you love close because life is so short but so very sweet. Never think its too late for a life to change... never lose hope.