Little Women

Except that there are five of us.

Growing up my family had close ties to another family just up the road. My sister and I were close friends with the three sisters. Our school district was quite small so classes were often shared among the grades. My best friend from the age of six was the oldest of us. One grade ahead of me she led the way from elementary school to high school. She paved the way through our teen years and into college. Though we are geographically distant, to this day we are as close as ever. I know I can call her any time of day or night and she will pick up the phone.

Her younger sisters were spaced between me and my sister in terms of age. My sister had the privilege of sharing classes with both. And a classroom with the youngest. The bond among the three of them is strong and everlasting.

The years have taken each of us in different directions. Three of us have stayed in New England. One moved to Texas. Another lives in Switzerland.

Their father recently passed away. It was sudden and unexpected. We came together as a family to love, and hold each other tight. Such an event is never the easiest way to reunite. The occasion brought us together to celebrate his life, and our lives together.

Our lives are different from the characters in Louisa May Alcott’s novels, but track closely all the same. We grew up together. Shared triumphs and disappointments. And have experienced life, and loss, together. As adults we continue to be more than friends. We are family.

We are our own Little Women.

If you enjoy my blog and would like to follow me on Facebook, I can be found at The Reluctant Survivor.

Inheritance

When I hear the word “inheritance” I think of an estate; where someone has died and bequeathed a financial benefit to a relative. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of inheritance includes “the acquisition of a possession, condition, or trait from past generations.”

My mother recently moved into a Senior Living Apartment. My sister and her friend did most of the heavy lifting when it came to the move. They packed things in boxes, identified furniture to move, and disassembled the various electronic devices that went with her. I helped with some of the packing. Some.

Sorting through my mother’s things afforded us an opportunity to inherit items that she wanted us to have. There were items that she was not going to take with her, but we had given her as a gift so we “helped ourselves” to the inheritance. At some point, we will have a family gathering to sort through items that others may want. I am sure there are gifts my brother or niece gave her that they would like to keep for themselves.

Sorting through my mother’s vast collection of coffee mugs was interesting. I hope that those she left behind will be inherited by family and friends.

Over the years, there is one mug that I always used when I visit my mother.

I assumed she would take it with her to her new apartment so that I would have “my mug” during my visits. Instead, she asked that I take it with me. It is my inheritance.

Of all the items I could ever inherit, this mug will mean the most to me. My mother is still alive, and I think of her every time I see it. I treasure it when I use it. And I am aware that there will come a time when this mug will be all that I have left as a tangible reminder of my mother’s love for me.

For me, this is the greatest earthly inheritance a daughter can receive from her mother.

Thank you, Mom!

If you enjoy my blog and would like to follow me on Facebook, I can be found at The Reluctant Survivor.

Other Gods

You shall have no other gods before me.

Deuteronomy 5:7 (ESV)

This past week there was a national scandal in higher education related to admissions at several elite, private schools. The short version is that wealthy parents used an intermediary to bribe someone so that their child could get into the college or university. There are several layers and different scams, but ultimately it is all the same. Bribery.

One of those parents is Lori Loughlin. When I read the “breaking news” (that came as an email into my in-box at work) I thought: this can’t be! Lori Loughlin? How is this possible?

Many know Ms. Loughlin for her role as Aunt Becky in Full House. Some know her from Hallmark Channel’s Garage Sale Mystery. I know her best as Abigail Stanton on Hallmark’s When Calls the Heart. What shocked me most was that the roles she plays are always so wholesome. Additionally, I have seen her on interviews in which she comes across as someone with good ethics and moral standards. I first heard of When Calls the Heart in an interview when she talked about her relationship with Hallmark and how fortunate she was that they let her set a family-friendly schedule of filming so that she could be home more with her children.

I am not devastated. That is too harsh. However, I was disappointed. How could this honest, trustworthy actress who plays these upstanding characters that seek justice and uphold noble standards possibly have done this? Yes, we are all sinful and have fallen short. I am sure she has personal flaws. We all do. But something this big, and this bad, was completely out of character.

You see, I had come to equate her television characters with who she is as a person. She could not possibly be any different from the roles she plays. And while I don’t think James Spader actually is a con man who manipulates people and industry to get what he wants, somehow Lori Loughlin was Abigail Stanton.

However, my heartache is not because Lori Loughlin is human. It is because I created an idol.

If you enjoy my blog and would like to follow me on Facebook, I can be found at The Reluctant Survivor.

I'll Remember

She sits, drinking her morning coffee

I ask her if she’d like eggs for breakfast

“Yes, that would be fine”

She takes another sip

“What’s for breakfast?”

Eggs, I remind her

As I empty the dishwasher

We talk about today’s agenda

A trip to the store is planned

“What are you going to make for breakfast?”

I tell her I thought eggs would be nice

Oh yes, she likes eggs

Easter is coming; “Do you remember?”

There was that Easter that it snowed

She likes to travel

And would like to go to Maine

I offer to plan a trip

“But I won’t remember”

I’ll remember for us

Pennies On The Floor

The pennies scatter

Across the floor

Under the bed

Glass shards interspersed

Gently I stoop

And begin to pick them up

Gloves to prevent cuts

Gloves to keep from getting dirty

It is painstakingly slow

I sit on the floor

And shoo the cats away

I do not want them to get hurt

She would have left them

The glass, the dirt, the chaos

The possibility of harm

No capability to rectify

Angry tears form

I am mad at her for not caring

But she can’t help herself

She does care; she can’t do

This is not what I wished for her