Many of you knew that I stepped down from being a moderator because of the attention I needed to give to caring for my Mom. She has been in and out of the hospital and a follow-up rehab facility since October, and she has declined more rapidly than anyone expected. 

On March 1st I was at Mom's hospital bedside arranging to move her to an assisted-living facility and start end-of-life hospice care that afternoon. The night before I had sent my customary weekly email to my boss with my project updates and a note that I would miss the manager's meeting. So, while at Mom's bedside, my boss had another manager call me on my cell phone and fire me because "he puts his kids, his wife, and his family ahead of this company." The rest of the company was appalled by this, but now I'm free of him. 

Mom died peacefully on Monday, March 7, at the age of 93. Then on Friday, March 11, my wife's step-dad -- the only grandpa my kids have known -- died in Tennessee from mesothelioma.

At 93, Mom lived a full and blessed life that not only blessed me and my family, but so many others across the country. She will be very greatly missed. 

I've been keeping busy with all the things one does after a family member dies, and this has helped with processing our grief. Being fired has been a blessing, since I haven't been torn between home and work. I'll go job hunting in April. At some point, though, the busy-ness will subside and grief may revisit me.

My former company now seems headed for bankruptcy, and I'm free of having to deal with that mess. It's so sad to see the disaster he has brought down upon his own head.

Today, Easter Sunday, we celebrated the reason for our hope and assurance of the future, and our heavy hearts were lifted in that joy. 

Triibeard's Thirty-NINE years of being bearded    (The recent journey from a short- to a long-beard)
Introducing LEGO-Sheriff Triibeard     (The origin story for our polymeric polychromatic hero)
Sheriff Triibeard and The Case of the Missing Beard Balm   (In search of that scoundrel RiffRaff)
Sheriff Triibeard and the Hermit Hoarder    (Consequences of acquisitiveness)

In a world of shorn faces, it is our privilege to offer those around us the exquisite opportunity to know a gentleman with a beard.
Last Edited By: Triibeard Mar 27 16 8:49 PM. Edited 2 times.