Just a Few Lines to Say

Just a few lines to say that I read further in Mum's letters tonight and am trying to decide how to share them. 

 Since Dad died in late January of 2003, the months that I have to share are his last days, and they were difficult ones, even though Mum continued to write about the everyday things and mentioned only hints at the background against which they unfolded.

 I noticed that she suddenly began to simply start her writing with the day of the week as a heading and no date. I dated them with the help of an online calendar, but it is indicative of the stress that she was under without writing about it.

 How I wish I could go back to those months and be with her in them, but I can't, and couldn't then, but in her late seventies, and in frail health herself, she carried a heavy load.

I will continue if I can think of how to do this well, in a way that honours them both. Maybe I will share snippets of the journey--we'll see!

 Thank you for caring to read here.
Belinda

Comments

Marilyn said…
Even your wrestling with how to handle the letters from a particularly sensitive period tells an interesting story to those following your blog a long time. I like that you've shared your uncertainty.
5:18 AM
Belinda said…
Thank you for that, Marilyn. For me this is a treasure, though a very sad one. I started by wanting people to hear the voice that I had discovered buried in boxes, a voice I love and the voice that taught me my first and last life lessons. I still want to do that, but I don't think that sharing each letter verbatim is the way to do it.
8:47 AM
Susan said…
I'm with Marilyn. Your struggle with "how" and "how much" and "what" to share is all part of the story that I am not just "enjoying being made a part of" but learning from and even picking up a few seemingly obscure pieces that somehow fit into and make more sense of that puzzle that is my own story... It's all good...
9:16 AM
Belinda said…
Thank you Susan. You are personally mentioned in one of Mum's letters in December, you'll be thrilled to know, and I will definitely share those words. :)
11:55 AM
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