More Surprise Found Treasure on this ‘Remembering’ Weekend

Unlike the ‘surprise’ out-of-character-card in these photos, Mom loved giving the super dramatic, long winded, “Hallmark” type cards for special occasions. I came across a couple of them yesterday when cleaning out boxes, always signed, Much Love – Mom and Toby (her dog). I used to lovingly tease her about those pre-fabricated cards even though I knew she enjoyed giving them.

So I was surprised when I also came across this uncharacteristically hand written card she had penned out for me. She normally let Hallmark call the shots on expressing herself, but with this last card, she seemed to need to say exactly what she wanted to say. Mom and I were very verbal in sharing our love for each other and she was never reticent in offering how proud she was of me or how she saw me in the world. For her to feel the need to write these thoughts down, was uncommon. In the end my mom had severe dementia, which along with old age were her ultimate undoing. She wrote out this particular card on the front end of the demise of her mind and for what would prove to be our last Christmas together here in CA. No Hallmark this time. She took pains to formulate then express her own thoughts; she wanted to write down how she saw me in that particular moment. Mom knew that her mind was not operating as she wanted and without stating it, she also knew it likely never would again. When receiving these written words I can now remember pausing to note the grave importance she placed on giving me this last card, and I treated the offering with special care. I couldn’t have known then what a lasting treasure it would be.