On the one hand, I can count my blessings -- I made it past my 35th birthday with all my grandparents alive, which is a fine rarity. All of them lived long and full lives. And only one of them (the maternal grandmother) declined really badly: both of my father's parents went pretty suddenly. Still, this is an exceptionally painful instance of "when it rains, it pours", and I find myself thoroughly unprepared for the constant repetition of grim news...
-- Justin
Who has to admit that I don't envy my father, who has had to make arrangements for most of these...