Smorg, I am blank as I start this message, but I am sure God will help me fill the space in front of me.
I am stingy. I don't want you to leave us. At the same time, whether things are too unbearably tough for only a moment, or for too much time, you need to be in charge of your own life. None of us has the right to tell you what to do, or how to be. We all want you to know you are free to go when you decide to and we will find a way to survive, but you also need to know that you are also free to change your mind and stay, which is what we all want, most. (We want you to get well and keep us rolling around until we lose so much weight we're good looking, again!) We need the laughs you bring us. Life is so tough. There were times I was ready to give up after my heart attacks and during the cancer... Sometimes, it was all I could do to even sit at the computer to read a thread. I really needed a laugh and you were there to give it. YOU HELPED ME LIVE. Thank you so much for that!
I am not sure how to repay you for what you've given me in the short time I've known you on this forum, but I want you to know this much... Whether you live another hour, another week, another year, or even another decade, I promise to do all I can to make you laugh, when you log onto the forum, or when Barbara logs in and reads the messages to you. If I can somehow give you back even a little of the life you gave me, you are worth it. I will cry when you finally decide to leave us, but I will do everything I can to laugh and help you laugh, until that time comes. My hope is that the laughter will give you back as much life as it gave me.
There is nothing to forgive you for. You have been a great and wonderful role model for many of us. Nobody can replace you, but nobody will forget you, either. For all we know, you may stick around and make us laugh for a long time to come. The decision is between you and God.