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Care Partner of the Month -November/December
page 4

Roberta Laws
Brooklyn, New York

Finally on Friday the 22nd I had put everything in place and a dear friend called me that evening after hearing about my mother and offered me a buddy pass so that I could fly without expense to Orlando. What I would have done through all of this without the love and support of my friends...I do not know. When we spoke on Saturday she told me she had arranged for me to fly on Sunday morning and I began to get myself ready.

At 8:30 that evening my mom slipped away. I remember asking, "Why couldn't you wait one more day? Why did you move so far from me?" I could hear her say to me what she had said on the few occasions I wanted to visit her but couldn't. She'd say "You're going to wear yourself down always racing down here to see me. I'm fine. Take care of yourself. You're handling my life and yours...that's a lot. I know you'll come as soon as you can."

In that moment I felt that my mom knew everything was in place and she could go home. She didn't want me to come and sit and hold her hand. She trusted me to take care of her and I had done that. Maybe her final gift to me was not to remember her in a hospital...I don't know. But I do know that my final gift to her was to send her on her next journey like the Queen that she was, and that was my privilege.