There Are Angels Among Us
Once upon a time, there was a woman named Maggie Gorishek who—like the children’s book character, Strega Nona—worked in her autumn years, churning and churning, tirelessly. The difference between Strega Nona and Maggie is that Strega Nona is a folktale, and Maggie is real. And Maggie’s magic does not involve a bottomless pasta pot but […]
The Sister I Miss, The Sister I Love
To my mother, Sandy, this is for you.
You were gone before I could know you, but you are in everything I am. You left behind three daughters by the time you were 30—Allyson, Andrea, and me. We grew up without you, but never without the love you gave us.
I’m sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you. I love you.
Tragedy to Triumph: A Knock on the Door Changed My Life…
July 31, 2014, was just another beautiful, sunny summer day in the suburbs of Chicago. I would have never guessed when I woke up that morning and kissed my husband goodbye as he went off to work that it would be the day that the world would forever change for me, my daughters and, frankly, so many others. That morning, I had just come home from a run when my doorbell rang. I looked outside and saw a local suburban police officer. He was holding a piece of paper in his hands with a phone number, and he just kept repeating
Christopher’s Gifts
I sat early one spring morning with my love’s head resting on my lap and his big trusting eyes looking into mine. For a clue. For a sign. For help. He seem to dissociate from what was going on with the rest of his body. It was just him and me there. In ICU. The beeps, the buzzers, the voices fading into a monotony of noise. He to me and me to him. I stroking his head, caressing his body, his magnificent body. His eyes boring into my heart and many on lookers, despite the early hour, watching the moment that was the two of us.
Do I have the strength?
