The Last Act of Love: The Story of My Brother and His Sister

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Do something they loved: you might choose to do something that the deceased really loved doing. It could be listening to their favorite or visiting something special to them and you. Cathy tells her story with such intimacy and love, that it became painful for me to read. I am extremely close with my brother and I understand that deep bond to 100 percent, so in a way this read was almost to close to home. But I enjoyed it immensely. Cathy takes me through every raw emotion of hers and she leaves nothing out. She was very honest about her feelings, the good and the bad, and I learned some things as well about taking care of a person in a vegetative state. We remember your passing today dad and celebrate your life. You were a truly special man and one who left a hole that could never be filled

Heartfelt Death Anniversary Quotes and Remembrance 78 Heartfelt Death Anniversary Quotes and Remembrance

Those we love don’t go away, they walk beside us every day. Unseen, unheard, but always near; still loved, still missed and very dear”– Anonymous

For years, Rentzenbrink and her parents became full time carers of Matty. Rentzenbrink’s mother talks about experiencing bereavement without death. Whilst Matty did not die, he was clearly not the Matty before the accident. This was an ambiguous loss as they where grieving someone who was still alive, yet unable to participate in life, unable to express wishes, needs and emotions.

The Last Act of Love - Northern Soul The Last Act of Love - Northern Soul

Reading this book has been like reading one of my worst nightmares. I don't know what I would do if my brother ended up like Cathy's, but I know I wouldn't be as strong as she was. This could have so easily been a story of misery and sentiment, but it isn't. Cathy Rentzenbrink is an extraordinarily talented writer. Her writing is honest, and breathtaking, and touching and incredibly moving, yet it is not in the least bit dramatic or self-pitying. Cathy doesn't gloss over the facts, or try to hide her feelings and is quite brutal with herself at times.For many pet owners, however, even the thought of losing a beloved pet can be too much to process. When a pet’s quality of life declines so much that the owner is faced with having to make the decision to actively end that pet’s life, it can seem impossibly overwhelming. How many times has an owner told me that they just wanted their pet to “die peacefully in its sleep”? Yet, very few animals die quietly in their sleep and even those pets too often have suffered needlessly until their body simply could not go on. A peaceful death is often only possible with the intervention of euthanasia.

The Last Act of Love | Wellcome Book Prize

Matty did survive the car accident, but afterwards was in a permanent vegetative state. Rentzenbrink admits that she and her family did not fully understand what this meant at the time, and whether care professionals fully explained this to them. For a long time they were hopeful for recovery, clutching to stories about people awakening from comas after years and years. But Matty did not recover. He did not get better. I sometimes worry that some of the off hand comments I make are in poor taste, especially when death, grief and loss are involved, but having just finished reading The Last Act of Love I think Rentzenbrink and I share the ability of finding humour in sometimes not really funny moments (but really they are, if you think about it).Many siblings have relationships that are stronger and deeper than we might imagine. So when you lose a brother it can be absolutely devastating. The quotes and messages below will help to commemorate your brother and remember his legacy. However, despite this book being difficult to read it was incredibly inspiring to see what horrible trauma Cathy and her family were able to overcome and see the amazing things they were able to achieve.