Post by musicradio77 on Apr 4, 2005 17:14:36 GMT -5
From the Daily News:
Beloved Nurse Is With Him Near End
BY SUZANNE ROZDEBA
SPECIAL TO THE DAILY NEWS
Pope John Paul II spent his last days surrounded by his closest aides and best friends praying beside him, and granting final blessings to those who loved him.
One of those was Ewa Kostrzebska, a Polish nurse who worked with the pontiff for the last 16 years.
Kostrzebska, who saw the Pope several times a week during those years, began praying nearly around the clock when John Paul was taken to the hospital. As the end drew near, she sought him out one last time.
It was Wednesday, the day the Pope made one final wave from his window, when she was ushered into his room. She found him surrounded by a few of those closest to him.
"It was so sunny. There was a little breeze. He was very alert. He didn't look like he was suffering," Kostrzebska told the Daily News. "He was calm, smiling."
The nurse had made a point of bringing him flowers over the years, because she knew the Pope liked flowers as much as he liked his Polish sweets.
"I brought him flowers, and the nuns brought them to his room. I didn't know how else to thank him," she said.
Speaking in a soft, sorrowful voice, Kostrzebska said John Paul was aware of his condition, but remained at peace.
"He recognized those around him," the nurse said. "He couldn't speak loudly, but he was able to give blessings. I didn't expect much. I was just happy to see him and receive his blessing."
She knew that the Pope had decided to stay in his quarters to die.
"I agreed with that," she said. "It was the decision of the holy father to be with his 'family,' and especially with his beloved friend who was with him through all those years, Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz. He really took care of him. Everyone is so grateful for how devoted the archbishop was to him. He was next to him day and night over the years."
Besides Dziwisz, others in the room when the Pope died included Msgr. Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, Maurice Cardinal Jaworski, Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko, the Rev. Tadeusz Styczen, three nuns who assisted the Pope and their superior, Sister Tobiana Sobodka.
The Pope's personal physician, Dr. Renato Buzzonetti, with the two doctors on call, Dr. Alessandro Barelli and Dr. Ciro D'Allol, and two nurses on call, also were present.
The Vatican said the Pope's final hours were marked by the "uninterrupted prayer of all those who were assisting him in his pious death."
His inner circle celebrated John Paul's last mass and gave him last rites just 97 minutes before he died.
Kostrzebska spent that night, Saturday, praying in St. Peter's Square and returned Sunday morning for a special Mass there.
She saw her Pope again yesterday in his private quarters, before the body was moved to St. Peter's Basilica.
"After the Mass, I was permitted to go see the holy father in the Vatican. I gazed down at the holy father for the last time and said goodbye," she said quietly.
"He was lying so peacefully there in his red, ornate attire. The holy father looked so at peace, very serene. The holy father's face looked smooth, beautiful, and calm. ... It was very sunny around him. It was a beautiful day," she said. "There were no flowers around him when I saw him."
She spent yesterday morning after that farewell walking on the Vatican's private terrace, where the Pope used to go to meditate, she said.
"I saw the Archbishop [Dziwisz] there, and he greeted me so warmly," she said. "We all had felt like a big family. And as a Pole, I felt this was my patriotic duty to take care of the holy father because he showed me so much love and wisdom."
More so than most Catholics, Kostrzebska is struggling with her loss.
"It's so hard now because I was with him for so many years, and watched over him and took care of him in my own way," she said, her voice slipping to a whisper. "The people closest to him are really taking this to heart, especially the Poles closest tohim."
The Pope, she said, treated those closest to him "like family. He loved us very much. I always remember these words he once told me: Z kim przestajesz, tym zostajesz,'" which means, you become like those around you.
"It stuck in my memory forever. From that point, I tried to live my life by his teachings. He was teaching people to love everyone around you, and be forgiving," she said.
Walking through the square at night, she would always look to see if his lights were on.
"Now, his windows are empty," she said.
Beloved Nurse Is With Him Near End
BY SUZANNE ROZDEBA
SPECIAL TO THE DAILY NEWS
Pope John Paul II spent his last days surrounded by his closest aides and best friends praying beside him, and granting final blessings to those who loved him.
One of those was Ewa Kostrzebska, a Polish nurse who worked with the pontiff for the last 16 years.
Kostrzebska, who saw the Pope several times a week during those years, began praying nearly around the clock when John Paul was taken to the hospital. As the end drew near, she sought him out one last time.
It was Wednesday, the day the Pope made one final wave from his window, when she was ushered into his room. She found him surrounded by a few of those closest to him.
"It was so sunny. There was a little breeze. He was very alert. He didn't look like he was suffering," Kostrzebska told the Daily News. "He was calm, smiling."
The nurse had made a point of bringing him flowers over the years, because she knew the Pope liked flowers as much as he liked his Polish sweets.
"I brought him flowers, and the nuns brought them to his room. I didn't know how else to thank him," she said.
Speaking in a soft, sorrowful voice, Kostrzebska said John Paul was aware of his condition, but remained at peace.
"He recognized those around him," the nurse said. "He couldn't speak loudly, but he was able to give blessings. I didn't expect much. I was just happy to see him and receive his blessing."
She knew that the Pope had decided to stay in his quarters to die.
"I agreed with that," she said. "It was the decision of the holy father to be with his 'family,' and especially with his beloved friend who was with him through all those years, Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz. He really took care of him. Everyone is so grateful for how devoted the archbishop was to him. He was next to him day and night over the years."
Besides Dziwisz, others in the room when the Pope died included Msgr. Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, Maurice Cardinal Jaworski, Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko, the Rev. Tadeusz Styczen, three nuns who assisted the Pope and their superior, Sister Tobiana Sobodka.
The Pope's personal physician, Dr. Renato Buzzonetti, with the two doctors on call, Dr. Alessandro Barelli and Dr. Ciro D'Allol, and two nurses on call, also were present.
The Vatican said the Pope's final hours were marked by the "uninterrupted prayer of all those who were assisting him in his pious death."
His inner circle celebrated John Paul's last mass and gave him last rites just 97 minutes before he died.
Kostrzebska spent that night, Saturday, praying in St. Peter's Square and returned Sunday morning for a special Mass there.
She saw her Pope again yesterday in his private quarters, before the body was moved to St. Peter's Basilica.
"After the Mass, I was permitted to go see the holy father in the Vatican. I gazed down at the holy father for the last time and said goodbye," she said quietly.
"He was lying so peacefully there in his red, ornate attire. The holy father looked so at peace, very serene. The holy father's face looked smooth, beautiful, and calm. ... It was very sunny around him. It was a beautiful day," she said. "There were no flowers around him when I saw him."
She spent yesterday morning after that farewell walking on the Vatican's private terrace, where the Pope used to go to meditate, she said.
"I saw the Archbishop [Dziwisz] there, and he greeted me so warmly," she said. "We all had felt like a big family. And as a Pole, I felt this was my patriotic duty to take care of the holy father because he showed me so much love and wisdom."
More so than most Catholics, Kostrzebska is struggling with her loss.
"It's so hard now because I was with him for so many years, and watched over him and took care of him in my own way," she said, her voice slipping to a whisper. "The people closest to him are really taking this to heart, especially the Poles closest tohim."
The Pope, she said, treated those closest to him "like family. He loved us very much. I always remember these words he once told me: Z kim przestajesz, tym zostajesz,'" which means, you become like those around you.
"It stuck in my memory forever. From that point, I tried to live my life by his teachings. He was teaching people to love everyone around you, and be forgiving," she said.
Walking through the square at night, she would always look to see if his lights were on.
"Now, his windows are empty," she said.