niceice
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2003
- Messages
- 1,792
Niki “The Bug” Jimenez
May 11, 1979 – February 01, 2004
May 11, 1979 – February 01, 2004
We are currently closed in observance of the passing of our beloved daughter Niki who passed away on Sunday, February 1st after valiantly fighting a life long affliction of Fanconi A-Plastic Anemia which is a bone marrow disorder that prevents the normal production of white and red blood cells. Niki passed away at her home accompanied by her family, her Kitty and her close friend Jon who stayed by her side during the worst of times without fail.
We are extremely grateful to all of the people who took the time to make Niki feel better during the peak of her illness by sending a simple postcard or picture of their favorite pet doing something funny. So many people here on PS responded to our request to send Niki cards that she had quite a stack of mail to open each day and it brought her immense pleasure... Many of those pictures and letters were read again to her in the final hours of her life when she could no longer speak, they brought a smile to her face and we want all of you to know that.
Niki will be greatly missed by us and her family and close friends. We are comforted in knowing that she no longer suffers the tremendous pain that she felt in the last few months of her life. We know that Niki is in the Grace of God and will know no greater joy than she feels now. Thank you for your support and understanding during our time of need. We simply wanted to thank the community and to explain our absence which may be extensive. We are off this week to wrap things up around the house and the office (maybe 30 - 45 minutes per day) and then we bury Niki on Friday at one o'clock in the afternoon in a small Victorian type cemetery where Niki used to sneak in and picnic amongst the graves with her close friends - no doubt an attempt to become a little more familiar with the death she knew she eventually faced. The cemetery looks as if it were created by Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas) and everybody who knew Niki personally agrees that it is the perfect resting place for her shell...
After that we're going to finish wrapping things up around the office and then we're going to take a much needed break and unplug ourselves for a couple of weeks. We're still responding to our email and processing a few shipments here and there because Niki wouldn't have it any other way, the truth is that we need a bit of a distraction to keep us from going insane. No matter how much we've prepared for this moment, the loss of Niki is absolutely unbearable at times since Niki was more our best friend than she ever was a daughter if that makes sense. At other times, we are simply relieved that her pain is finally over and her soul has been set free.
For those who have ever wondered, we swear that we saw her soul leave her body at the moment of her death, sounds crazy, we know. Niki spent the last few hours unable to move her eyes or her limbs, her lungs filling with fluid, her breathing heavy and labored. She had asked that we not take her to the hospital this time... She passed away exactly at 7:11 p.m. which just happen to be Robin's favorite numbers 7/11 - as in Craps, Robin's fathers game of choice... And the now, not so secret combination for Robin's briefcase (guess we're going to have to change that)... The point being, Niki controlled her exit to the minute... Her last breath was crystal clear, not a hint of the death rattle that we had suffered through for the hours preceding this moment, Niki's eyes flew open and seemed lucid for a second, she looked right at her mother Robin, exhaled a short little gasp and slipped away. Robin has indicated that it felt like Niki passed right through her as if to say that she was all right, all is well, and you should no longer worry. This is the realization that we want all of you to know, we know that Niki is in a better place. It is our personal grief at the loss of a friend and a daughter that saddens us, not Niki's passing in itself. Thank you for your support, we're going to go toast a box of Kleenex now
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