Life: It Goes On - February 21

Life: it goes on. Those words have never struck me as so true as they have in the past ten days. On February 11th, my mom sat down to take a nap and never woke up. I am gutted and, yet, somehow those of us she left have to figure out how to go on. She was, as so many have noted, our center. She was the organizer, the family's biggest cheerleader, the person whose life focused on caring for and about others. 

Twenty-eight years ago she was diagnosed with congestive heart failure; we thought we were going to lose her. Thanks to amazing doctors, she lived to see the birth of two more grandchildren; the high school and college graduations; the marriages of five of her grandchildren; and the births of three great-grandchildren. She was so excited to be able to call me recently to tell me that a fourth great-grandchild would arrive this summer. She was our rock, the person who helped hold me together then the Big Guy was battling cancer, when we nearly lost Mini-me, and as Miss H went through recovery from addiction. I don't know how I go on without our center, my rock, my best friend. But I know I have to do that. I know I have to go on. My mom would want that.