On June 22nd, my mother passed away. She was 81, so I knew the call would come sooner or later, but she had only gone into the hospital the previous Thursday. The diagnosis of lung cancer hadn’t even been confirmed yet. By the 21st, she was already fading fast. I saw her on Monday evening at about 9pm, and she was gone 4 hours later. I don’t think we are ever truly prepared for a parent’s death, but how can we possibly begin to prepare in only 4 days?