The Next Phase of Life...

Mom passed away this morning at 4:30am.  Jenn and I were not surprised.  We spent a few hours with her together yesterday and at one point made eye contact across the bed, noting the feeling that we both had.  Mom seemed so exhausted.  Literally and everything else.  I told this to Mama as we crossed paths during the shift change.  When she came home at midnight she said that she didn't feel that way.  Mom had had a very alert conversation with her that lasted about 45 minutes.  She asked Mama what happened to her and said that "it happened so fast."  She said she knew that everyone had been to visit her.  She aslo mentioned two bills that were on her desk that she hadn't paid. She was always very organized and on top of things! 

At 4am the phone rang.  Of course I knew immediately.  I answered it to hear my Uncle Kicky say, "y'all need to get down here."  Everyone had heard the phone ring and were getting dressed when I confirmed that it was Kicky.  Kicky had been taking the 12am - 7am shift.  Luckily Ellen had spent the night with Mary's other grandma, so we could move quickly.

We got to the hospital in record time, but were five minutes too late.  Kicky said that it was very peaceful.  He said her b/p was dropping and the nurses knew what was happening.  Her heart stopped beating, which made Kicky grab her hand, and she lived for five more minutes while he sat with her. 

We are all heartbroken and so sad, but so thankful for the past two days!  Getting the chance to talk to spend the last 10 days with her and have the last 2 be so magical was more than I could ever hoped for. 

Jenn and I wrote this today.  We wanted to make sure it was more than just the facts.

Bobbie Joyce Watkins was born to Benjamin Roy Beckham and Lottie Beckham on December 9, 1936, in Tupelo, Miss. She was the youngest of three children. In 1951 she married Lee Stewart Watkins and in 1952 gave birth to their first child, Gayle Lee. By the time she was 22 four more children had followed - Charles Eugene "Chuck," Richard Stewart "Rick," James Earl, and Benjamin Clarence "Benji." As she raised her children, she and Lee co-owned Duke Tire Co. in Forest Park. The business is still in operation today. In 1977, her first granddaughter, Shanna Johnson, arrived. In 1980, her second, Jennifer Johnson, and in 1983, her only grandson, Bryan Johnson.

"Mom," as everyone came to know her, had a huge heart. She always had a smile on her face, a positive attitude, and a warm hug to give. Mom loved mocha frappuccinos, the Atlanta Braves, Mississippi, gambling all night, on-line video poker, egg sandwiches, staying up late and sleeping in. Spending time with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren was what put the biggest smile on her face in the last years of her life.

Mom took her last breath on Tuesday, April 3, 2012.

She is survived by her daughter, Gayle Johnson (Jeff); sons, Ricky and James; grandchildren, Shanna Schroeder (Jeff ), Jennifer Tingle (Neil), and Bryan Johnson; great grandchildren, Wesley, Lucas, Tyrus, Mary and Ellen. She is preceded in death by her parents, spouse, brother and sister, and sons, Chuck and Benji, daughter in-law, Gayle Watkins, and her beloved dog, Mike.

A service will be held in the chapel at Thomas L. Scroggs Funeral Directors, Thursday, April 5, 2012 at 11 a.m. Interment to follow at Fairview Memorial Gardens in Ellenwood. Visitation will be held on Wednesday evening from 5-8 p.m. Thomas L. Scroggs Funeral Directors, Morrow, Ga., 770-961-2828 in charge of arrangements. www.thomasscroggsfuneraldirectors.com.