CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 23: THE FIRST TREATMENT
The treatment made her sick.
Very sick.
The strong, organized woman I had known my entire life seemed to disappear.
Some days she slept for hours.
Some days she could barely eat.
One afternoon I found her staring out the hospital window.
"What are you thinking about?" I asked.
She smiled weakly.
"You."
I sat beside her.
"I've spent so many years worrying about you."
I looked down.
"And now?"
"Now I'm worried I won't have enough time."
I didn't answer.
She reached for my hand.
"Promise me something."
"What?"
"Don't waste your life being angry."
Tears filled my eyes.
"I'm trying."
"I know."
She smiled sadly.
"I wish I had learned that lesson earlier."
A nurse entered the room and checked her medication.
After she left, my mother whispered:
"I don't want Ella to remember me like this."
I looked at her.
"She won't."
"How do you know?"
"Because children remember love."
My mother's eyes filled with tears.
"You really believe that?"
I nodded.
She closed her eyes for a moment.
Then she whispered:
"Good."
When I left that evening, I found myself praying.
May you like
I wasn't even sure to whom.
I just wanted more time.
