gracias, gracias, gracias…
My mom had me in her early twenties. Like everything in life, that came with its pros and cons. One thing I always thought would be wonderful was the short generational gap — I imagined it would give me more time with her. Yet life has a way of slapping you in the face and reminding you how wrong assumptions can be.
What began as a two-month trip to Argentina with my sisters, to help her fight a random intruder in her body that appeared out of nowhere, ended with a goodbye that came far too soon. I’m still trying to understand how quickly everything unfolded, how fast it all slipped away.
Life will never be the same. From the time I was born (and yes, I know how dramatic this sounds), I always knew I would never be ready for this moment. I still need the daily calls, the arguments on why Splendar is worst than sugar, walk with the dogs, the random frase…. Are you going out dressed like that?…. I will miss every single thing. The good, the bad and the ugly. Her unconditional support and her trying to tell me the name of the actor in a movie by describing him as “ really famous” ….. and me answering “well yes mom, the movie has 5 Oscars”.
As an agnostic person death always scared me a bit. Mom had 5 days knowing she was leaving us. And her final lesson to me was how she approach those times. She found humor, she played lots of Beatles, she let us hugged her and hugged us back. She told me and my sisters never to be apart.
She built a team of family and friends so strong that the cafeteria at the hospital and courtyard was crowded by an extension of every single relationship she created.
I miss her, SO much. And this f…hurts. But I am truly the luckiest person on earth to have had her as my mom.
She never imposed a way of living on us — not religion, not how to live life. She only asked us to be grateful. Since I was a kid, and later with my nieces and nephews, when it was time to go to sleep she would have us say out loud the people we were grateful for and then finish with: “Gracias, gracias, gracias.”
Well, Mom… I am thankful for you.
GRACIAS, GRACIAS, GRACIAS.