Yesterday I had a great day planned. I met a couple of my girlfriends for breakfast and then was heading to meet a few more for a manicure/pedicure. I got a call during breakfast from my MIL - she needed a ride to the city - her sister hadn't been answering the phone and my SIL was at the house banging on the door and still no answer.

I left breakfast, not expecting the worst, trying to be optimistic. Picked up my MIL and headed to the city. She was convinced her sister had "passed on" I was convinced she had just fallen and couldn't get up. The weather was beautiful, the drive quick and uneventful with minimal traffic.

We got there just as the police were coming out of the house. They had used a ladder to climb to the second floor and go in through the only open window in the house. They found Aunt Muriel on the couch, with the TV on and her coffee on the table next to her. My MIL was right, she had passed on, she was 71 years old and lived alone, by choice. We had all asked her over the years to move closer to us, so she could come for dinner on Sundays or see the kids during the week. She always said she was happy living where she was; the house she grew up in, purchased by her parents in 1935 for $3000.

She went out each day to get the paper and groceries, with her wire cart, she went to church and she watched TV. That was pretty much it. To some it may seem sad, to live alone, to die alone but it was her choice and we all respected it. We would see her for the holidays. She always sent a card on our birthdays.

I think sitting in your favorite chair, with the TV on is a pretty good way to go. We will bury her on Friday after a Catholic Mass - that's all she wanted. We are happy to oblige her wishes - there will be maybe a dozen mourners there and we each will remember in our own way. My wish for Aunt Muriel is peace. That is what I wish for all of us.