In Memoriam...

I got a sad e-mail from one of my good friends a few days back. I couldn't respond properly to it or discuss it on this blog because I was quite busy with all sorts of things and I was letting the news of her passing sink in. My friend's mother passed away on New Year's day - New Year's day of all days. It seemed she had been suffering from kidney disease for some time now, and my friend was very quiet about the whole thing up until she passed away. I was able to respond to his initial e-mail with messages of condolences and memories of interacting with his mom - short as they were- whenever I dropped by (usually unannounced) to bug my friend as he worked his various oil paintings. This sad news was relevant to me because we all have mothers. Her passing made think of, and cherish even more, the fact that my mother is still here with me. My friend said he regretted not spending enough time with her as he pursued his ambitions and other pursuits that were of a personal nature. I, on the other hand, realize now that my predicament of being unable to leave home (even though I wanted to many times - money was the issue of course) seem to have been a blessing in disguise: Even though I felt like one of those nerds who live in the basement of their parent's house, I realize now that I had spent a lot of quality time with both of my parents. My father has been deceased for over a decade and now I'm head of the household caring for my old and frail mother (whom I refuse to send to a nursing home: I simply don't trust them - that's another story). Anthony's mom - as well as my other friend's moms - were very prominent supporting characters while we were growing up. Mainly because we would hang out at one guy's house for long periods of time and eat their food like a swarm of hungry locusts! Don't worry readers, we made sure to replace the food we ravaged as well as not break anything while we hung out; after all, we didn't want to wear out our welcome; and with the awareness I'm blessed with now, I will all the more cherish the time spent with my mother as she nears the twilight of her days.