Man live-tweets mum's dying days
Losing a loved one is usually a private moment, but one journalist in the US has chosen to share the painful experience of losing his mother with his 1.2 million Twitter followers.
Scott Simon, a National Public Radio host, has tweeted the painful details of his mother's decline as she lay in a Chicago hospital bed in her dying days.
Beginning late last week, Simon began sharing details of his visits to the ICU, thanking his followers for their well wishes, and tweeting light-hearted moments with his mother.
"My mother knows the name & story of every nurse & doctor in the ICU. She keeps no one a stranger", he tweeted on Saturday.
Over the coming days he shared several touching moments with his mother, some of them humorous, many heartbreaking.
"I consider this a good sign: mother sez [sic] when time comes, obit headline should be Three Jewish Husbands, But No Guilt", he joked.
"My mother & I just sang Que Sera Sera 3 times. God bless you Doris Day for giving us such a great theme song", he said.
"My mother drifts to sleep listening to Nat's Unforgettable. I keep things light, but moments like this hard, if sweet."
Simon even shared photos from within the hospital room, including the "loveli cityscape" at the foot of his mother's bed.
Over the coming days it became clear Simon was spending his last days with his mother, but the flow of tweets didn't stop.
"Mother & I just finished a duet of We'll Meet Again. Every word has meaning. Nurse looks in, asks, 'Do you take requests?'"
"Mother: "I don't know why this is going on so long. I'm late for everything I guess."
"I don't know how we'll get through these next few days. And, I don't want them to end."
"In middle of nights like this, my knees shake as if there's an earthquake. I hold my mother's arm for strength--still."
"I love holding my mother's hand. Haven't held it like this since I was 9. Why did I stop? I thought it unmanly? What crap."
"Heart rate dropping. Heart dropping."
Finally, at 10am AEST this morning, Simon simply tweeted: "The heavens over Chicago have opened and Patricia Lyons Simon Newman has stepped onstage."
The final tweet on Simon's timeline is a simple thank you to everyone who shared the experience with him.
"Thank you for all yr warm wishes and prayers. Such love drives the world."
