Greg called today. The manager of the section that is looking after dad had called. She said that dad was going to be put on morphine, to try to relieve his restlessness, which, it is thought, is caused by mounting discomfort. She told Greg that she thought that things would be 'sooner rather than later' (the sort of vague metaphors that start to pepper dialogue concerning someone about to die). Greg decided to go and see dad this evening.

Apparently, the manager had called Rachel earlier in the day, but Rachel has been too upset to speak to either Greg or me, and the manager had then called Greg and asked him to pass the information on.

Greg asked me when I was going to visit, and I said I would go in the morning. He seemed not to like this answer, asking 'what are you doing now?'

I called Greg later in the evening and he gave me a rather terse report. He'd been shown the blotchiness of dad's hands and feet; a sign, apparently, of imminent death. I don't know whether this is verbatim or not. The morphine had not yet started. Dad has lost his swallow reflex - a serious step towards complete shutdown, I imagine. He didn't take mum in for dad.

I'll call Greg again in the morning, as his visit is likely to occur before mine.