There Are No Words

My father called this morning at an ungoldly hour; as Greg was still half asleep, he picked up the phone and talked to him. I have not spoken to my father in several years and still refuse to converse with him.

He called to let us know that my mother died on October 3.

She was 87 years old. She passed away from heart failure.

There are no words in me. I am bereft.

As I was growing up, my mother was my best friend.

When I met Greg, he came to love her even more than his own mother. He loved to tease her about little things and she loved the attention.

Even tho we had not spoken in a long time, I loved my mother dearly and I know that she loved me.

This beautiful woman had given birth to 5 children; 3 girls & 2 boys-I was the last; born when she was 40 years old. I cannot imagine the inner strength she had in order to proceed with a pregnancy at that age when it was not popular.

I have been reviewing my past files and looking through the meager pile of pictures of my mother that I have saved on my computer. Even though it is making me miserably depressed, it brings her memory closer to me.

Thank god that she was able to live to see my daughter fully grown. Kelsey was such a joy to her grandmother when she was little. They had many wonderful times together.

My mother suffered through the loss of her first child right after birth; enduring the antics of the anti-christ (as I call my oldest sister); my siblings run-ins with the law; an overbearing, difficult husband; cancer of the thyroid; cobalt treatment for uterine cancer; quadruple heart by-pass surgery; and a horrific car accident (thanks to my stupid father's asinine driving). This woman was blessed with a long and challenging life.

I love you, Mom and always will.

Geraldine Ann Burns
1920-2007