This is my post for #freewriters 2173 prompt the last battle hosted by 
When I saw this prompt the thought that came to me was the people in my family who fought the last battle the ultimate battle for life. My grandmother was the first person that I knew who passed away and it was the first time I saw my Dad cry. As a child who had never lost anyone, I can remember it like it was yesterday.
We kids were not allowed to go to the funeral, I forget who was watching us but we were at Grandma's house, and when the adults came back Dad sat on the swing on the front porch he was wearing a white shirt with black pants. He started crying, the hard type of crying, he got up and went outside to the royal poinsettia tree and leaned against the trunk. I remember staring at him and finally walking over and wrapping my arms around his leg, after a little bit he picked me up and held me tight. She died 9-23-1965.
The bigger of the 2 boys was my brother Victor, this is the only picture I have of him. My Dad's second wife put him up for adoption while Dad was away at sea, he was a shrimper and would be gone for weeks. When he came home Victor was adopted and Dad could not find him. My oldest sister found who adopted him several years ago and his adopted mother sent her a beautiful letter about his life, the last battle for him was Vietnam.
My brother Jimbo was 2 years older than me, and even though I loved him, he was mean to me. He would hold me under the water until I thought I was going to pass out. He thought it was funny. He is the reason I jumped off of the inlet bridge at 9 years old, I knew if I did not jump, he was going to throw me off of it. When he became a teenager he started sniffing gas and I do not know what else. In 1979 Mom took him to the hospital because he was out of his mind, a fight started between him and the orderlies and he was beaten to death. That is how he lost the last battle.
My brother Hoss is standing on a Sunfish that washed in the inlet. The last battle for him was because he was unloading 3/4 inch plywood from a train and a band around the plywood broke and it all came down on him. I this was 1987
I do not have a picture of my brother Butch, the last battle for him was in 1976, he lost his life in a car wreck, my brother Tommy was driving and he broke his back, it took 2 years before he could walk.
My Dad fought the last battle with prostate cancer, it was 1997.
My Mom had a stroke during COVID-19, and she was put in a bad nursing home which we took her out of and brought her home, my sisters and I cared for her, and the last battle for her was COVID. 2021 she lost the battle.
My brother Tommy passed December 13 2022 the last battle was caused by COPD, he would not give up smoking, even catching his face on fire because he lit a cigarette while using oxygen, this was just weeks before he passed.
This is not a pleasant post to write, if you think your loved ones will be always here, this is not the case. So spend time with them whenever you can or give them a call just to say I love you.
photos are mine