She died
On Friday, October 23, 2009 my mother died. The death was not
unanticipated. She went peacefully in her sleep when no one was
around. She picked a good time (if ever there is a good time) when
family was already planning to come to town for dad's birthday on
Wednesday. What I didn't anticipate was the difficulty telling my
dad. After 60
years of marriage the love is more intense as is the grief. He wept. He
sat next to mom's body and held her hand. For a time he prayed. Then
he cried again. It is impossible to express the poignancy of that
moment.
We'll
have the funeral on Tuesday and then on Wednesday we can have the big
85th birthday party that dad wanted but said he couldn't have because
of mom's health. We had planned to have a dinner at their house with
just his children there so as not to disturb mom. He would not leave
her to have a party. Now, we'll have a big party with everyone
invited.
It seems appropriate to celebrate mom's life, while
celebrating dad's birthday, by having her family together laughing and
talking and joking around. That is her legacy, a loving family ever
expanding.