As we go about our lives, it’s easy to forget how important it is to enjoy the things that really matter. When this loving father was close to death, he just wanted some more quality time with his family.

Norbert Schemm was a proud husband and father who spent his entire life in Appleton, Wisconsin. Norbert didn’t lead an extravagant life, but no one can deny that he lived it to the fullest.

When he was a young man, he met a young woman, Joanne, and soon fell completely in love. They married and had three children, all boys, Bob, Tom and John.

The decades went by. The kids grew up. Norbert and Joanne retired.

Like most residents of the Midwest, the Schemms all loved a good beer. Whenever the boys met up with their parents for Thanksgivings or Christmasses, they’d all share a few drinks and have a great time.

Luckily, Norbert and Joanne were able to enjoy a nice long retirement together. But eventually, when Norbert was in his late eighties, he received some tragic news.

He had colon cancer. He knew that at his age, his chances of overcoming the disease were slim.

But Norbert was not exactly sad. Of course, he wished that he could still be in good health. But he also knew that many other people are not lucky enough to live a long, happy life.

Instead of dwelling on his death, Norbert wanted his last days to be filled with him and his family enjoying life.

So Norbert’s boys took all the time off from work that they could to be around their dad.

Norbert was treated well by the hospital, but as he expected, his condition slowly got worse.

In November of 2019, Norbert realized that he didn’t have long left.

He knew that he might not be at Thanksgiving that year. So Joanne called up all of the boys. They all went back to their hometown to spend some final quality time with their dad.

Over November, Norbert deteriorated even more. By mid-November, he had become bedridden.

In the hospital, he was always around loved ones, whether that was Joanne or his boys or his grandchildren.

Finally, Norbert could tell that the end was getting near. He had one final request. He wanted to share beers with his boys, like he had done on so many holidays.

So one of Norbert’s children went out and picked up some Bud Lights. He brought them back to his grandfather’s hospital bed and cracked them open. As they were drinking, Norbert started talking about his children’s families, asking them what his grandchildren might go on to do in the future. Then, he asked his children to take care of Joanne.

When they had all drunk their beers, Norbert went to sleep. His kids told him to rest well. The next day, Norbert died. He was 87 years old.

One of Norbert’s grandchildren uploaded a photo to Twitter of Norbert, his boys and his wife all drinking beers. He explained how it was his granddad’s last wish. The tweet soon went viral, gaining hundreds of thousands of likes and tens of thousands of retweets and comments. People have been saying things like this:

Norbert’s final wish has really struck a chord with people.

Many people have seen the picture of Norbert drinking with his kids and realized just how precious life is. We all need to enjoy our lives to the fullest and share as many moments with loved ones as we can.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: Today, Adam Schemm