Catherine 1956

She wasn’t only just my mother; she was my friend, a good friend.
She had only just begun to live.
It’s unfair because she worked hard for it.
We spent 18 full years under the same roof.
That sounds like a long time, but it’s not.
I would trade anything for one full day to just sit and hear her voice again.
So I sat and I twiddled my thumbs as you told me to “be strong”.
“It’s the only certain thing in this life, so be a big boy because…
Life goes on.
You can’t live your life in fear.
Do something for me and get out of this town because there’s nothing for you here.”
She never had to tell me twice, she was intelligent.
I promised that I’d keep my word, so i will.
She gave good advice, the best that I have known.
She said “It’s not the dead I’m afraid of…it’s the living I fear”
So if a kid at school had broken my arm or a girl had smashed my heart.
She would hold me and tell me that “It was their loss” and to “toughen up because…
Life goes on.
You can’t live your life in fear.
Do something for me and get out of this town because there’s nothing for you here.”