Friday will mark a year since my mom died.  Weirdly, it seems like both yesterday and a lifetime ago at the same time.

And what a year it’s been!  When I headed to Kitchener a year ago today, the impacts of the Coronavirus, as we called it then, were just starting to be felt in Canada.  

We had no idea what we didn’t know at that point, and we certainly could never have predicted what the coming year would look like.

Timing is Everything

My mom was in ICU for 4 days and we were all able to be there with her.  Even a week later, that would not have been the case.

Her funeral was on March 17th.  It was one of the last funeral masses said in Hamilton diocese since they had actually closed churches the day before.  We were allowed to go ahead, and I will forever be grateful to both Fr. Brian at St. Anne’s and my uncle the bishop for helping that to happen!  

There were fewer people at the funeral home and at the funeral mass, but we got to share both of these really important traditions with many others who loved our mom.  Again, even a few days later and that would not have been the case.

They say that timing is everything and, while I wish we could have had many more years, if she was going to leave us in 2020, her timing could not have been better.

Change is the Name of the Game

One of many elevator signs in my parent’s apartment building in Kitchener

My dad and I stayed in Kitchener for 3 more weeks as the world was slowly locking down around us.  There were new handmade signs in the elevator every day with terms like “social distancing”, signs that encouraged people to use elbows to touch the buttons; and then another sign asking people NOT to use their feet to push the buttons.  In Victoria Park, there were chalk markings showing 6 ft distances and telling people to stay positive. Instructions seemed to be changing daily. It all seemed crazy and we thought that the adjustments would be short-lived.

When we decided to move to Bracebridge, we figured that my dad would be able to return to Kitchener by summer because surely the restrictions would be lifted by then!

Legacy

My mom won the Mission Legacy Award for her work as a Registered Nurse at St. Mary’s Hospital in Kitchener

I can’t help but think that my mom would be very proud of my dad.  He has adjusted to a lot this year, and all of the changes have been outside of his control.  Through it all, he has managed to walk over 10,000 steps per day and has gotten to know people and engaged in activities at Castle Peak.  I know this is not what he thought life would look like, and I know he misses my mom every day, but he is putting one foot in front of the other and moving forward.

I have also appreciated stronger relationships with my brothers.  We always communicated through mom, getting the news about each other’s lives through her.  Now we are talking more and have a group chat together and they have both made more trips to Bracebridge this year than in the entire time we have lived here!

I remember promising my mom in the hospital that we would take care of dad and each other, and we have.  In one way, I am glad that she has missed this crazy year, but she left a pretty big hole in our lives, and we miss her every day.  

On International Women’s Day (and everyday), I am grateful for the very strong woman who raised me!

Love you forever, mom xo