Cherish
The magnitude of what had happened didn’t hit me until I was on my way home. The two-lane road was dark except for my headlights and an occasional streetlight. A song played on the radio but seemed to blend from one to the other. I had done this before on other occasions, but somehow this experience resonated much differently.
As I walked the halls of the hospital, the white cotton cord cutting into my hand from the weight of his belongings, I knew there was a difference.
The Tomb
The letter about the rent increase for my storage unit prompted me to do something that so many had told me to do before, clean it out. My father had said, as well as many others that if it had been there for all those years, I didn’t need it. I made excuses and kept paying the monthly charge; after all, there was furniture there and things, my things, things from my stepdaughters, ex-husband, and my mother. The last time I’d been there before now was two years ago. With me longing to leave Chicago and move to LA it was time to get rid of the excess baggage.
Death Came To Visit
Death came to visit my home when I was a junior in high school, yet I didn’t wish to let it in. My mother got up one Saturday morning shortly after Valentine’s Day in 1984. For me that morning was like most others. I got up and was eating breakfast and watched television with my younger step-brother. The peace of the morning didn’t last long as my mother and step-father started screaming at each other. She was mad because he had sent his ex-wife a dozen long stem roses for the holiday. My mother got nothing.
I Don’t Want To Leave You
When you look at the person you love, knowing their time is limited, you try to appreciate every moment you have with them. However, at the same time, you wonder if today is the last day.
As their panic rises, you feel helpless as their tears flow. You want to help them, but sometimes you just can’t. You’re helplessly begging, pleading for someone to come in and calm them. Fear burns inside you that their panic may cause another heart attack, especially as they clench at their chest.