After spending four months in the hospital, Papa Carl was wheeled out in July 2020. Slowly, his condition stabilized and he came off the ventilator. ROBINSON: My desire was that he would walk out of the hospital so that we could actually be recognized as a couple and not have to live kind of like in hiding.ĬRAIG: Even though Papa Carl was sedated, Aunt Mattie thinks he heard the call with everyone on it. They've been a couple for 18 years, which Papa Carl had kept a secret. We did an end-of-life call with his son and his friend, Darryl.ĭARRYL ROBINSON: I do remember saying that he was my rock, that we had been in each other's lives for 18 years and that I don't want us to spend another moment apart.ĬRAIG: Darryl Robinson isn't just Papa Carl's friend. It was more than three times that they told us that Carl wasn't going to make it. He was going up and down, up and down, up and down, up and down. His blood pressure was going up and down. The next day, Carl was in ICU on a ventilator. MATTIE: He sounded horrible, like he was dying. But in March of 2020, we called 911 together to send an ambulance for Papa Carl. I'm never too tired for Andrew (laughter).ĬRAIG: My Great-Aunt Mattie and I talk all the time. I don't have the stamina that I used to have. It's why he has this home in Decatur, Ga.ĭUDLEY: As a Black person in America, I'm putting this all together for them to get a leg up in society. You're going to spray my shoe.ĭUDLEY: Then you're going to have to disinfect it.ĬRAIG: Two - no to heights.
Watch out.ĬRAIG: There are three rules to follow around Papa Carl.
His backyard sits on a hill freckled with white clovers.ĬARL DUDLEY: They're weeds, so I'm getting rid of them. Papa Carl wipes them from his forehead, breathing heavily, though his work is just beginning. Carl Dudley is the grandfather of NPR's Andrew Craig, who has the story.ĪNDREW CRAIG, BYLINE: Pearls of sweat glint with sunrise. The 68-year-old man must confront his past to create a hopeful future. How will your loved ones remember you after you're gone? Carl Dudley of Decatur, Ga., wants to leave a legacy, but deep insecurities get in the way after COVID-19 leaves him disabled and dependent on family for survival.