I hate 5 am phone calls.  They never seem to be good news.

Early this morning I got the news that my brother-in-law, Joe, had passed away during the night.  He's not been in good health for many years, due to his diabetes.  He's had vision problems, a small stroke, a kidney transplant (now failed--he's been on dialysis for several years now) and has had both legs amputated below the knee for infections.   He's been feeling very poorly for several weeks, including last evening, and died in his recliner.  They found him about 1:30 am. 

It's been obvious that Joe's quality of life has declined greatly in the past few years, and it's been ages and ages since he really felt well enough to do much of anything.  But it's still sad to lose him, and we are feeling the loss.  I comfort myself with the thought that he's feeling better now, with eyes and kidneys and legs that all work fine.