Doug’s parents drove across several states to help out with funeral preparations. Upon arrival, they claimed the most difficult task. They took the youngest child shopping for appropriate funeral attire AND convinced him to wear the clothing that wasn’t shorts and a t-shirt while we visited the funeral home to discuss which funeral plans we […]
I still can’t make it a day without reaching for the phone to send Dad a picture or tell him something. On his coffee at Hardees days, I still time my shower so that I will be dressed before he drops by the house. I still cry every time I catch myself doing those things. […]
“E refuses to let me check his homework.” “Why?” “I think he’s afraid I’ll cry or puke on it.” < - extended silence -> “Maybe his older siblings should check his homework for a while.”
E: “What will we do without him?” Me: “I honestly don’t know sweetie. I think we have to figure it out as we go.”
William L Collier left this Earth on February 15th, 2016, surrounded by family and friends. Though the exact measure of truth and exaggeration in his stories will never be known, a few things are definitely true. He was falsely accused of dying as an infant, then sold to a loving family. His first job was […]
My siblings and I exchange homemade gifts every Christmas. It is much more fun than trying to shop for the perfect thing with a limited budget. This year, Doug made wind chimes and I made cat toys. Last year we made decorative bottle lights and paired them with a matching unopened bottle of adult beverage. […]
Me: “I’m going out to run errands. Need anything?” Family: “Nope.” I text home two hours later. “Heading home unless anyone needs something.” Text from child: “Nobody needs anything.” I come home, unload groceries and sit down to remove my shoes and read email. An hour later, I remove my bra and spend half an […]
The older he gets, the more familiar my father becomes with death. Last breaths at hospital bedsides, holding the hand of a neighbor internally hemorrhaging on the curb, waiting with a friend for professionals to remove their spouse from the home and endlessly facing his own mortality is my father’s life. Every time death happens, […]
We met the relatives. It was surprisingly comfortable. It would have been easy to mistake the gathering as a normal family reunion of people who haven’t seen each other in a lengthy period of time, except we were the branch that they didn’t know existed. Oh, they knew that a baby boy had been born. […]
What do you call an extended family reunion of people who didn’t know each other existed until recently? It’s certainly not a “re”-union. I’m still working on the correct word for the occasion, but it is happening next month. People, pictures, slides, old movies and a mix of happy and anxious feelings are going to […]