Category Archives: Conversations with My Mother

Conversations with My Mother: A Year Later: An Exposition on Grief

A year ago today my mom died on an unimaginably beautiful autumn day. I started Conversations with my Mother as a way to capture her spirit and life and to share the ways in which she could surprise so many … Continue reading

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The Days of Forced Relaxation Are Coming to An End

Last year at the end of March my boss took me into his office and told me that our unit was being closed down due to budget cuts and that I would no longer have a job after three months. … Continue reading

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Conversations with my mother: Oh Tessie, isn’t this great!

For my mom, the little Dutch girl. Often when I was a young girl my mother would look at the incredible dinner we were eating and say, “Ohhhh Tessie, look at this. This isn’t so bad at all. If only … Continue reading

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Conversations with my mother: How Grief is Like a Super Nova

Today is December 1st 2010. Today is also the day that a new person will be moving into Apt.301 371 Lakeshore Road West, my mother’s apartment. It feels weird to think that 40 years of living have drawn to a … Continue reading

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Conversations with My Mother: Things I’ve learned from Rosie

My mom died in the amazing Dorothy Ley Hospice on Saturday October 9th in the late afternoon. It was a brilliantly beautiful fall day and she had her family by her side. Dorothy Ley lies somewhere just outside Port Credit … Continue reading

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Conversations with My Mother: Every Moment Counts

The conversations I have with my mom these days are changing rapidly because her ability to speak is decreasing daily. We all in our own way wait for those moments to arrive when my mom’s personality is able to emerge … Continue reading

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End of life care decisions: Dorothy Ley Hospice

It was very difficult for us as a family to realize that we couldn’t care for Rosie at home. The truth was that the idea of caring for my mother at the end stages of her illness  was for most … Continue reading

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Conversations with my mother: Laughing our asses off in spite of it all

Well, these are not easy times in my family’s life. Rosie has terminal cancer and has been moved to longterm care until we can get her into a hospice. For now we have made her place as cosy as possible … Continue reading

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Dying isn’t for the faint of heart

The truth is that dying hurts. It hurts for the person who is dying and it hurts for the people around that person.  I’ve learned that it’s hard watching the body of a person with an alert, active mind, slowly … Continue reading

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Because I love lists… 25 more things about Rosie

Rosie: 1. loves Dancing with the Stars. 2. loves attention. 3. loves to dance. 4. met her best friend Aggie in high school in Holland. They still are best friends. 5. and Aggie sing Dutch songs together and talk about … Continue reading

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