My sweet Mom passed away very recently. She is finally at rest after a very long struggle.
Thank you kind friends that were aware that she was ill, for your thoughtful words and generous kind offers. The last several years were difficult for her but thanks to my amazing sister Kipley, who lives nearby to her in Gainseville, and has been her constant care giver all this time, she was able to find some comfort. Kippi and Mom both contracted Covid last month. Although my Mom was asymptomatic, my sister was extremely sick and they were unable to see each other. Feeling so isolated, she took a turn for the worse. This terrible disease has impacted so very many lives.
My Mom was six months shy of 90 years old. We were so very blessed to have her for as long as we did. I have been looking through boxes and old photo albums. Here are some snapshots from when we were growing up in New York, visits to relatives in Florida, and the last is of my Mom and me on the evening before Alex was born. I remember it very well because I was nine months plus two weeks pregnant and Alex was born the next morning, during a blizzard. Mom had come up from Florida to help with Olivia while we were in the hospital. She hadn’t seen snow in a decade and was delighted!
While we were there in Florida, we visited my Aunt Joy in Venice, who is 94 and was too frail to travel to Gainesville to be with my Mom. We went for a walk on Venice Beach and for the brief half hour there, we were delighted to see Brown Pelicans diving off shore and a mixed flock of Sandwich Terns, Royal Terns, Laughing Gulls, and Sanderlings. Seeing this beautiful collection of wild creatures was somehow reassuring and lifted our spirits.
The holidays can be difficult and I hope challenges you may be facing don’t prevent you from having a blessed day. Thinking of you and wishing you a joyous Thanksgiving.