thousands of words of encouragement, clutched her children tightly, and fought for every inch of survival. Now they rested in mine, warm only because I surrounded them. She hovered in that strange place between here and somewhere else, where each breath is fragile and time seems to fold in on itself. A complicated mixture of grief and relief settled over me. Grief, because losing her felt like losing a part of my body and spirit. Relief, because her suffering had become unbearable to watch. For five and a half years she had moved through cycles of optimism and despair—surgeries, chemotherapy, experimental treatments, hopeful announcements, crushing news. Five and a half years in which death circled her constantly, waiting for a moment to close in. And yet through all of that, she resisted with a courage that stunned everyone who knew her. Continue reading…
