In shock.
My mother-in-law got here a week ago for a month long stay. Last night she got really upset because no one in New Jersey would pick up the phone. She called everyone she could think of, she was worried about her husband. Big Karl, my FIL, has never been in the best of health so she had a right to be worried. But we never would have dreamed the truth. Skip ahead to 3am this morning and her brother calls, he says he's literally right around the corner from my house (being 10 hours from NJ the news came as quite a shock). He asked me to wake Evelyn and sit her down on the couch. I knew it was going to be horrible news. Karl's younger brother (by 3 years) died yesterday, he commited suicide. My MIL took it very hard to be expected, she had a bad 20 minutes or so but then it started to sink in. She left an hour later with her brother and sister. They contacted the Red Cross, who in turn contacted Karl in Iraq. He sounded upset on the phone but better than I expected. I'm sure being a world away he has to maintain a "stiff upper lip". My husband is a huge softie though, seemingly rock hard on the outside and a marshmallow on the inside. He is going to fall apart and I hope I am able to be some comfort to him. I just can't believe it happened. I am in total shock, I guess still in the denial stage.