Gone But Not Forgotten

The last Mother's Day I spent with my mother was in 1998, and she was dying. We'd known it was coming - she'd been diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, better known as 'Lou Gehrig's disease') two years earlier, and had spent the previous 18 months bedridden and on a respirator. ALS slowly robbed her of her ability to move, speak or breath, but it never took away her sweetness, gentleness, or her sense of humor - she was writing jokes on a legal pad until the day she died. So today, on the anniversary of her death, I'm moved to post a memorium:

In loving memory of Louise Bohannon
March 9, 1925 - May 16, 1998

Eight years without you hasn’t dimmed the memories of the sparkle in your eye, the softness of your touch, the smell of your perfume. I see you in my dreams, in the faces of my sisters, in the roses in my garden. I know I’ll see you again with a smile on your face, waiting on the other side, just as I know you were waiting for Jon when he followed you over. Keep him out of trouble over there, will ya? All my love, now and forever,

Terri