ABOUT THE BOOK
Spring light and warmth painted the room with the promise of summer as the three women softly said goodbye to their friend. She was prepared for her departure, having received visitors throughout the last few days. As the afternoon approached, the number of callers had eased to those with her now.
Their voices encouraged her to continue her solitary journey, their reassuring words reminding her that her parents and many others were awaiting her arrival. They gathered around her bed, holding her hands, struggling unsuccessfully to hold back tears as she took her last breath and left them.
As if the air in the room had calmed and cleansed it of sadness, the women dried their tears, gave Noreen a final embrace, and left the room to inform the others in the home of her departure. Two women walked into the living area of the group home to comfort housemates. The other, her sister, walked through the side door and into the late afternoon brightness.
The air seemed cleaner now, making it easier to breathe. After more than six years of living with brain cancer, the pain had ceased for Noreen and everyone who knew her.
