Mema

Me and Mema

This is me and Mema last Saturday. She passed away peacefully this morning. She was 93. 

At times like these, thoughts turn to the afterlife. So many people seem so certain about what happens to you after you die. Some are certain that they DO know what happens. Some are certain that they don't know what happens. I have no idea what will happen to YOU when YOU die. But I will tell you what will happen to me...

When I die, my first stop will be Mema's house on the corner of 45th street. I will park by the big chain link gate at the back. There will be a dog in the yard, and it will be Daisy who will be as happy to see me in the afterlife as she is every night when I come home in this life. There will be roses on the trellises - tons of them. I'll go through the back door of the house and Jetta and Mema will be there in the tiny kitchen. It will not be a special occasion or a big day or a triumphant reunion. It will be a Wednesday. The dinner on the stove will be simple. Chicken and Dumplings or Spaghetti. We'll drink Lipton iced tea and eat chocolate chip cookies made with the recipe on the side of the Nestle Toll House chocolate chip package. We will watch Wheel of Fortune. And we will be so glad to see each other. 

Rest in peace, Mema.