I was young. I was too young to understand what it meant but I knew my grandmother, "Grammy Tibbetts", was sick-the kind of sick people discuss in a whisper. The memories I have are a wide-eyed perspective, low to the ground, trying to tune into stressful tones of adults around me discussing things that I knew weren't meant for my little ears but still, I tried to listen. Even at that young age I knew what I could handle and what I needed others to handle for me. I remember feeling very concerned for my mother as it was so obvious how difficult this was for her. It still is. I want this climb to ease her pain. I want this climb to give my family the joy they deserve in celebrating Grammy's life even if it was cut short. I want to create new, joyful memories and celebrate not grieve.
Over Thanksgiving I asked my mother to share some memories of her mother's battle with breast cancer. My mom, my sister and I reflected on our own personal experiences during this very difficult time for my family. For my sister and I our memories are limited to a few, seemingly insignificant moments in time. For my mom, it was incredibly traumatic. She had three young girls to take care of and was working two jobs as she and my dad typically did. There was little time for anything and now I can relate more that ever as a busy, working mom myself. My mom dug into her memories and tried to help us remember where we were in our lives during that time. At one point she remembered the flight she and Grammy took to bring her back to New England from Florida and pointed out that at that time you could still smoke on airplanes. These little things help put memories into perspective so well. It is always hard for my mom to talk about losing her mother and the long journey that led to her passing. This was one of many more conversations I hope to have with my family during this process. I want to lift the dark cloud that has been over my family for all of these years and truly celebrate Grammy's life while enhancing our own. Please join me!
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