Great story Gofaster, and well told.
GT, everything is a learning experience, even, --- no --- , especially the crappy stuff.
I hate the fact that my mom was taken at such a young age.
No, she wasn't an addict, just the opposite. She was a hero.
The youngest daughter of 7, born to Italian immigrants who spoke no English. She alone in her family attended college. This was the early 1940's, when women in college were still a relative rarity.
She always maintained her sense of wonder at the world, at people, at sports and was THE friend to most of the ladies in the neighborhood. Into her 40's and 50's she could still rattle off the triple play combination of the 1948 Cubs and she could still teach the local girls how to 'double dutch' by doing it.
She taught 7th grade for 30+ years, and was in the book "Who's Who" for elementary school teachers.
When she passed away at the age of 58, 600 people came to a memorial service in her honor. But even with all her abilities and activities and friends and admirers, I never felt anything but special. I hate that she is gone.
