Sometime in 1992 or 93, my mother decided that she couldn’t live alone any longer. She talked to my brother Martin and ended up moving to Maine to live with him. I was sad because I knew my mom was dying and now she was almost 1500 miles away, so I knew I wouldn’t see her very often. Somehow, between the time she moved out there and the time she died, we did get to Maine. She was living in a assisted living home and spent almost all of her time in bed. She was in good spirits and glad to see us, but it was hard.
When she first moved to Maine, she lived with Martin and his wife Sue. Things were fine until they came home from work one day to find her laying on the floor. She had fallen and couldn’t get up. (Just like the commercial everybody makes fun of). She had been laying there for several hours without any way of telling anyone of her plight. Martin decided that Mom shouldn’t be on her own anymore and checked her into the assisted living center.
In October of 1993, I got a call from Martin. He said, in effect “If you want to see your mother alive again, you’d better get here as soon as you can.” I was in a panic. I didn’t have any money. I called the airlines (didn’t have internet quite yet) and tried to get a hardship flight to Maine. Those are cheaper because getting a flight on a moments notice can really be expensive. It took me a while to convince someone that this was a hardship case but just as I was about to buy the ticket, Martin called again and said “Don’t bother, she’s gone.” So, the last time I saw my mother alive was when we visited Maine.
Martin took care of everything. Mom was to be buried in Bellevue, Michigan, next to Floyd who had died in the 60’s. Martin had gotten insurance that paid for flying her body back to Michigan to be buried. So, instead of flying to Maine, we all got in the car and drove to Michigan for the funeral. It’s been 15 years since she left us and I still miss her. She and I had a special Mother/son bond that few people have. I am looking forward greatly to seeing her again on the other side.
Dad
I remember our trip to Maine to see Grandma Kadar and Martin and Sue. It was fun – I was 16 I remember and it was in the fall I think. I remember pushing Grandma around in her wheel chair at the mall. She was so cute, let us wheel her anywhere. I remember being sad looking at her, you could see her aging. It was a fun trip though, seeing the light houses and the ocean, was really beautiful in Augusta.
That same trip I remember Kimmy getting sick after eating a calzone ( I think it was) at the same mall and she wasn’t the same for many months. It was weird. Do you remember that Kim? And on the drive out to Maine I remember Dad driving us through NYC! That was so cool at the time. But do you remember the hotel we stayed in after passing through the city?? It was so gross. I still think of that room for some reason. It’s not like I was that young, but looking back I think I made it all seem so much more of a big deal.
ANYWAY, just thinking back. Poor Grandma Kadar. She was so sweet. I miss her too Dad. It’s weird to not have any grandparents alive anymore. But at least we have the memories. I think it’s cool how you and Mom took us to see our relatives so often. It’s nice to remember those times.