He fully expected her to be there when he returned, but she wasn't. Norma, with her sweet and loving ways, died suddenly from a heart attack while she was talking to her sister on the phone that afternoon. Her wash was still on the line flapping in the wind. She had a cake in the oven. It was her husband's birthday.
Life can be unpredictable, but death more so.
My husband had a terminal illness, and he did suffer before he died. When I was no longer able to care for him alone, we got help and the assistance of Hospice. My daughters and I, however, had sufficient time to say our goodbyes to him, each in our own way. As he was dying, he was surrounded by the familiar things in his home and the family he loved. It was only at their mother's funeral that they finally came face to face with a common grief and resolved their differences.