Yep, that's right, in the frantic, worried state I was in, I wasn't paying too close attention to the signs and turned into the Children's Hospital parking garage (attributed, in part, to the fact that I hadn't yet had any coffee!). Upon realizing my ridiculous mistake, I hurriedly drove out of the garage and made my way across the street to the correct parking garage. Naturally, I paid no regard to which tower I was entering, so I ended up in the South Tower, the completely opposite end of the hospital I should have been in. At this point, I was practically running through the hospital.
Finally, I reached the room. The door was slightly open and I could hear faint sobbing through the opening in the doorway. My gut was wrenched, completely knotted up. A giant lump formed in my throat. We were all so close to Anne. We had all gone to high school with Natalie. We've been great friends for many, many years. Anne, who was Natalie's mother, was like a mother to all of us. She was there to laugh with. She was there to cry with. She was there to scold us when we had done something stupid (which we did, often). She was there to hang out with. She was there to go antiquing with. She was there to garden with. She was there. She was always there. no matter what.
Before I entered the room I took a long, deep breath. I had no idea what to expect once I entered that room. I walked in, and there she was, clearly incoherent. She was just lying on that cement block of a hospital bed, with all of these tubes and machines, hooked to this and that.
Jessie was standing near the door when I walked in, and immediately turned and embraced me with a long, warm hug. It was clear she had already been crying. As soon as we hugged, our tears flowed uncontrollably. How could this actually be happening? This has to be a terrible dream. Wake up! Wake up already! After a couple of minutes I made my way over to Natalie, who was kneeling bedside, holding her beloved mother's hand while sobbing quietly.