I am so channeling my late mother, Joan,  right now. She died at age 75 after fighting  Multiple myeloma for 5 years.  Throughout her fight, she never lost her cheery disposition with everyone . She continued to make people feel good about themselves, something she did her whole life. 

Now that my life has slowed down to a predictable pace of visits, I have come out of my shell and I’ve been very purposely asking personal questions and getting to know the staff and even some other patients.  I had a very touching moment with a young nurse named Amanda. She came out of nursing school and immediately went to work in a COVID ward. She worked insane hours under intense stress.  She shared pictures of her recent wedding and it was uplifting to see a young woman with so much ahead of her.   I asked her how she dealt with the stress.  “I switched jobs,” she laughed.  I told her that I felt that the atmosphere at the center was  very positive and the nurses were exceptional. I told her specifically what a great job she was doing. When she left, she put her hand on my arm. What a nice moment and so Joan!

Just to show you what type connection I have with my sister… She called later the same day and said I wanted to let you know that you’ve been channeling mom lately. If you look up at the paragraph before this one you’ll see that’s exactly what I wrote many hours ago. She says she sees it in my mannerisms and even just the way my eye might tick on my hand might flick. Very interesting and I’m glad that I have mom to help me with this. Judith said maybe she’s with us and I said oh she is.  She lives inside me, she is part of who I am.  I hope I will live on through my children and grandchildren. 

Mom and Hans 2007