Depressing QOTW!
Well this is a miserable QOTW! Might as well tell my story, though I warn you now - it's not funny.

I have had the misfortune of seeing a dead body. My Grandad died when I was 19 and I had the unpleasant task of identifying him.

Basically I went to Uni in the city over from where he had lived for many years. It was probably only a 20 minute bus ride away from where I was. My Grandad was a very quiet man, we used to always joke that he was never too sure what to do with us grandchildren once we were too old for penny mixes. I had been at Uni for around about 6 months and hadn't been to see him in all that time. I'd never really spent any time with him without all my family there and I knew that it would be awkward for both of us.

One night I got a phone call from my Mum saying that her and my Aunt hadn't been able to get an answer on his phone all evening and that neither of them had spoken to them in about a week. Would I go over to check on him? This was at about 8pm so I got the bus across knowing that this wasn't going to be good. He was 81 and had suffered a heart attack 4 years previously. I got to the house and the door was locked from the inside. Police were called and after around 3 hours they decided to break a back window to get access.

They found my Grandad on the kitchen floor. One of the neighbours identified him but they needed a second ID. I didn't want my Mum to have to go through that (plus they couldn't remove the body until it had been done) so I did. Worst thing I've ever had to do. He looked so small and tragic lying on the kitchen floor. He'd obviously had another heart attack in the kitchen when he got up in the morning, had fallen and smashed his face off the counter. He was still in his pajamas and looked like he was in so much pain.

It took me a long time to get over that, I had to take a break from Uni and eventually ended up dropping out. I still feel guilty that I never went to visit him when I lived so close. I feel like he died alone and in pain and that I should have been there.

Apologies for length and depressing content.
( commiegirl21 Can't think of anything witty on..., Fri 29 Feb 2008, 10:24, 2 replies)

Hope these are words of comfort
Dear CommieGirl

If you ever have children - who knows, you might have them, so apologies if so - you will find out the wonderful selfless love that having children brings. Any half-decent parent would always, always rather take on pain than see it inflicted on their children - and that applies just as much to grandparents.
Of course I never knew the man, but I am sure that your Grandad would be really upset to think that you were in any emotional pain or distress because of this. I'm sure you have a mental picture of him holding out some penny sweets for you, a shy smile on his face. Picture now him saying to you, with that same smile on his face, that although it hurt, it was over quickly, and of course he doesn't blame you or anyone else, if you'd have been there you couldn't have done anything and he'd really rather you weren't to see his pain and distress. And you're not to be guilty about this anymore.
My gran died in lots of pain from cancer, and I really wish I had been strong enough to have saved her from that pain with an overdose, but of course that's not possible, and I know that because she loved me she wouldn't want me to feel any guilt at all at what happened to her.
Sorry if this has been intrusive, but you shouldn't feel guilt - no-one who loved you would want that.
( I_Was_Mordred, Fri 29 Feb 2008, 10:50, closed)

I won't lie
This made me cry a lot. I'm so sorry you had to go through something like that, especially when just reading about it made me tear up.
(Wheeler back off Amazon, she's mine!, Fri 29 Feb 2008, 21:23, closed)