Main points of the video above:
With the peaceful end of my 86-year-old mother’s life on April 3, I’m filled with a sharp sense of urgency to write the memoir I began earlier this year. The narrative will be structured around the eight trips I took from Baltimore to California and back between July 2021 and December 2022 as I shepherded her toward a safe and quiet ending. Without giving too much away, I’ll mention that the book can be considered one woman’s answer to the ethical question of what we owe our dying parents if they mistreated or abused us, and the practical/psychological/spiritual question of how we might rise to the occasion with enough forgiveness, strength, and care in this final stage of their lives.
Along the way, there’ll be divorce mania and middle-aged heartbreak, childhood artistic dreams achieved or dashed, pandemic protocols relaxed or retightened, and all manner of childhood traumas re-triggered among grownups with wounds just below the surface of their seemingly competent adult lives.
Thanks to all of you for your readership and support. I’m hoping to finish a first draft by the end of the year if not by the end of the summer, and I may or may not be back here with essays in due time. If you’re new here, please feel free to peruse the archives.
All paid subscriptions are on pause until further notice. If you paid for a full year and would like a pro-rated refund, I’m very happy to oblige—just respond to your email notification for this entry.
Stay safe and sane, my friends.
Sandhya
Goodbye for now, and thanks.