"The death of a mother is the first sorrow wept without her" (unknown)

This is the first week without my mom. After the wake, the funeral and all the obligatory stuff, the emptiness and the void set in. Now what? I've never not had a parent in my life and it feels weird. My sister and I are orphans. Well-meaning friends ask how I'm doing and I say "fine" but I really feel like I am not doing so well. How do you explain how you feel to not have someone in your life anymore that has been there for 47 years? I talked to my mom every day sometimes 2-3 times a day. It was often about stupid stuff like the weather or something funny the dogs did, but it was a connection. That is when it hits the most- when I think of something I want to tell her- and that is when I feel the most devastated. She's really not here anymore and it hurts... a lot. I miss her more than I ever thought I could.

Please, make sure you tell people you love them, give hugs, spend time, make connections, because we never know how long we have on this earth and it's the time we have and the things we do that count.

In memory of my mom, Barbara: May 1, 1929 - October 18, 2008
I love you...You will be in our hearts and remembered forever