My strong, beautiful, colorful, vivacious, one-of-a-kind friend is dying. Two years ago, we told cancer he had NO idea who he was dealing with, but cancer, an ever discordant beast, decided to become a squatter in her liver and brain. With zombies being all the rage now and with Halloween so near, I’m sure my dear friend would want me to make a zombie/brain joke, but truthfully, I’m too exhausted and heartbroken to do so.
We are now dealing with the unsavory business of dying; the devil is in the details…insurance, the shuffling paperwork for Hospice, funeral plots & discussions of her service. These days, I am thankful for small things – the comfort that morphine provides, and these last, precious, lucid moments before her failing liver clouds her razor-sharp mind.
Her husband was introducing me & Renee to one of his co-workers, Craig, who stopped by this evening. “This is Jenni & Renee, two of her dearest friends.” I told Craig she was one of our “Charlie’s Angels.” I struck the famous pose and said, “She is the one in the middle.” It’s true. Renee, everyone’s favorite girl-next-door, would be Kelly Garrett (Jaclyn Smith). I would be Sabrina Duncan (Kate Jackson), the brainy, adrenaline junkie, ringleader. And our sweet Olene...well, she would be Jill Munroe, with every bit the color, shine, and flavor of Farrah Fawcett. Simply put, like Farrah, Olene has the “X factor.” Also like Farrah, she will be leaving the show way too soon. We will all somehow, regretfully & morosely, find a way to get on with the business of living. My own therapy will be what it always is; I will clear my head with the written word & by pounding the pavement in my running shoes, but like the show, our lives just won’t be as good without our Farrah.
As Olene was talking with Craig & his wife, Olene said to them simply, “Be good to each other.” We make life so complicated, but in the end, it really is that simple. Be good to each other.
