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Did you meet my mother-in-law?


I love this animation.  It feels like one of those Harry Potter portraits where the folks are living inside the picture.  I miss seeing Carmen smile like this.

If I go all the way back, I met Carmen in Florida, at FIT.  I somehow got stuck in the car alone with her (Mel ran into my apartment to grab something, when she turned from the front seat, looked me in the eye and said, "be careful with Melissa, she's special."  I think she was trying to make sure my intentions with her daughter were pure.

In 1998, Carmen joined us in California to help us take care of this new kid that just showed up one day in February.  Carmen was immediately protective, playful and focused in a way that still makes me do a double-take.  The love Carmen concentrated on Reagan put my mind at ease that our little girl was in far better hands than when we got home from work.

I loved Carmen like my mother.  She'd poke gentle kind-hearted fun at me and I'd give it back.  I wish more kids got the kind of love Reagan did from Carmen.  I think a lot of Reagan's can-do attitude came directly from Carmen's love.

I miss hearing Carmen talk Spanish.  The drawn out "entonce....." that caught my high school Spanish equipped ears.  How she used to hunt for the Spanish word for something she knew in English, so it just got thrown into the conversation.  I miss her confused looks when I'd try my best to speak her language.

Seeing Carmen the past few years has been tough.  Carmen was vain, in a borderline not so good way.  Looks were important and Carmen likely would have been crippled by embarrassment if Parkinsons wasn't deadening the blow.  I know she would have hated people seeing her in what the disease did to her.

I am so grateful for what Carmen gave to us.  Following us from CA to VT to CT; never complaining, always willing to do whatever we needed.  The loss of Carmen that's been happening for the past 5 years is welling up today.

Rest in peace, Mom; you've earned it.

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