I knew a couple of days ago that this was coming, but it still hit me hard Saturday afternoon when a good friend contacted me to say his mom had died just 20 minutes before.
Mary Harris was one of the sweetest women I’ve known. I got to know her about 15 years ago when she was learning to use an iMac and I became her informal tech support person. She always felt guilty for asking for help, so she would wait until her problem had gotten worse and worse. Then I’d finally get an email or a call asking for help
She was an incredibly gentle and gracious soul. I never heard her speak a negative word about anybody or anything. I’ve known for months that she was going downhill, but I was shocked by how quickly things changed. About 10 days ago, she took a short day trip and was walking stairs. By a week later, she couldn’t walk. And now she’s gone.
No matter what you believe about life after death, there’s an awful separation that comes with the death of the body. Even if we believe we will know a person’s spirit in another world, the separation for the present — and the unknown about the future — can be unbearable.
Great men who change the world rarely look impressive from start
What would your obit say about you — if you could write it yourself?
THE McELROY ZOO: Meet Alex, the dog who was dumped with a bowl
Need for love drives behaviors; for me, old needs make me eat
My father’s narcissistic abuse led to my mother’s attempt to kill him
Looking at the stars makes me feel connected, not insignificant
We’re neither friends nor enemies, just strangers who share the past
Society needs storytellers to help make sense of a changing world
My bad teen poetry suggests I’ve always hungered for missing love