Easier said than done......

CHARLENE DORIS PETERSON Charlene Doris Folger Peterson Sweetheart, Mother & Grandmother Charlene Doris Folger Peterson, age 75, passed away Feb. 12, 2010 at her home in Kearns, UT. Born May 3, 1934 in SLC, UT to Alfred Guy Folger and Doris Louise Neary. Graduated from Judge Memorial High School. Married Charles Joseph Peterson III on Dec. 28, 1953. Marriage later solemnized in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. Charlene loved Charles "Joe" with all her heart. She also had a great love for her children and grandchildren and enjoyed doing things for them. They were the love of her life. Survived by her husband of 56 years; children, Charles J., IV (Tracy), Debbie L. (Brad) Bona, Ronald G. (Melanie), David S. (Chauna), Jolene M. (Frank) DeJong, Darren L. (Misty), and Robert W. (Cheri); 21 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. One daughter, Nicole Diane, preceded her in death.


It just doesn't get any easier.. I thought with my Grandma having as many problems as she has had, that her passing would be easier to take. I was wrong. About a week ago my Grandma had, what we think, a stroke. She was no longer able to respond to us much. The first couple of days she was able to acknowledge us in the room. She was able to say "I love you" at least. They had an hospice nurse coming over. Eventually, my Grandpa had to make the tough decision to take her off of dialysis. We were told that would be a much more peaceful way to go than letting her Melanoma cancer kick in. Therefore, the dialysis stopped. We knew it was a matter of days. As the days went on, she became less and less responsive to us. With that said, you could still tell she knew you were in the room with her.

Thursday we stayed late that night holding her hand. After all the grandkids left, she felt it was finally time to go. 3am Friday morning she passed away. My Mom woke me up Friday morning to give me the sad news. I honestly didn't think it would feel so horrible. She needed to go, she really did. She fought a long battle. Yet, it didn't seem to change anything when you finally had to face the moment. I pulled myself together as much as I could to go to work. It is amazing how quiet your world becomes. How your thoughts seems to be the only thing you hear. As I cry the whole way to work, I look around me and think... this guy driving next to me is having a day just like any other, he has no clue that the puffy eyed girl next to him is falling apart. That my world has come to a stand still for a moment.

I do have to say, I have an amazing family. Every day for the passed week we took up what looked to be a whole block with our cars. It is amazing how everyone put aside what ever they were doing to support each other, my Grandma and my Grandpa in this difficult time. I know my Grandma would have been sooo happy to see all of us pull together like that. We would all stay until we finally had to sleep. They watched old family videos, looked at pictures and talked about all our family memories. I can honestly say, my childhood is filled with memories of vacations and sleep overs with my family. I am so lucky to have had such a good childhood. I can only hope and pray that I have a family that stays that strong through out the years. Definitely something to be proud of. At the end of the day, it is about family. The memories we make. The moments we share. There is never a fight worth giving up on your family for. Nothing is ever more important than the relationships we build with our families. I will miss my Grandma greatly. But she did leave a lot for us to live up to. She raised an amazing family.

I miss you so much already Grandma, You can now raise your daughter that you never got the chance to meet. I can only imagine the kind of reunion you had waiting for you.