Such a Tragedy

I just got home from a funeral. Yes, another funeral. This has been the fourth death I've had to deal with in the last four months. But this one, this one was unexpected. 

Aimee Haley is Eric's cousin. She lived here in Omaha with her husband and two kids, and was about 8 months pregnant with a baby girl. 

Her death was sudden. From what I heard, she said she wasn't feeling well after dinner and went upstairs to take a nap. She was found 40 minutes later, and had passed away. They delivered the baby by C-section, and she was stillborn. 

After the autopsy, the found out that she died from a very rare condition. I looked it up, and it's called an Amniotic Fluid Embolism. This happens to pregnant women, when the amniotic fluid inside the womb somehow gets to the venous circulation and travels to the lungs, causing a fall in blood pressure, shock, then death. 

The baby's name was Gretchen. The funeral was gorgeous, and it was a packed house with standing room only. She was a lawyer, and had quite the network of family, friends, clients, and colleagues. 

The hard part was last night, at the wake and vigil service, seeing the baby. She was in a gorgeous lace gown, and was so tiny. But she looked like a baby doll. The cutust little button nose, pouty lips and chubby chin and cheeks. 

It's hard to grasp things like this sometimes. Aimee was only 38. It's one thing when an elderly person passes away, but 38 is much too young. By the time you're, say, 80 or 85, you've left behind family and children and grandchildren, sometimes great-grandchildren. You're legacy lives on. But Aimee wasn't done leaving her mark on the world, and baby Gretchen never had the chance. It's such an unfortunate loss. 

Hopefully things will be looking up for the family soon. The Haley family alone has dealt with five deaths in the last two years, some expected and some sudden. It makes me look at what I have and those around me and be thankful and feel so blessed for what I have, even at such a young age. But these funerals really make you think about your own mortality. 

And personally, that's something I hope I don't have to face anytime soon. 

Sara Haley is a freelancer currently living in Nebraska with her husband and two children, along with numerous four-legged friends.  She writes for Bukisa, eHow, and her own personal blog at sarakhaley.blogspot.com.  She has written for numerous publications both online and off, and continues to enjoy sharing her knowledge and love for life with others.