Remembering Mom

Today is my mom's birthday. She passed away nearly a year ago, and this is her first birthday in Heaven. She was one of the few people in my life I loved unconditionally. We didn't make it easy at times, as we would annoy each other. Our personalities and lifestyles were very different. She was introverted and I am more like my dad, a true extrovert.

In her final few years, she moved to my town to be nearer to me as she needed help on occasion. In her final months, she moved into my home, and I helped her daily with her care. She made a pie for my husband - a task which practically exhausted her - just two weeks before she passed away, to show that she cared about us. Baking was her love language! 

I miss her terribly, but I can finally remember her without consistently breaking down into a crying heap. I'm going to stay busy today. I have a "coffee date" this morning with one of my favorite long-term members who I've been chatting with since 2021, and then I'm going to go watch my grandchild's swim practice, followed by lunch and meandering through one or more holiday craft fairs. Throughout the day I know she will be on my mind and in my heart. 

Grief is a journey, and today the path will be a little unsettling, reaching a "first" year milestone. At the end of the month, she will celebrate her first Heavenly anniversary. I hope she and Dad and all of my grandparents are all hanging out together and enjoying their best life. I also like to think that all cats go to Heaven, and that my mom is surrounded by her beloved pets who left this earth before her! She was having happy visions of them being in the room with her (hallucinations brought on by the lack of oxygen reaching her brain) and was looking forward to being reunited with them. It brought her comfort, and I also smile as I remember how happy she was to "see" them on occasion. 

If you are in the midst of your healing journey following a loss, I hope that you also can enjoy some of the happy moments as the memories pop up like misplaced treasures. I'm sending warm thoughts out in the universe on behalf of all of you who have lost a parent. Take care.