I remember Mom seeing the card, saying "That's me and Joanne!" and being so delighted at the thought of sending it to her. Mom was blond; Joanne was brunette. The two of them were always worried about their weight, always dieting. But they also enjoyed each other's company and spent a lot of time together over the years, as did our families as us kids were growing up. Mom and Joanne both grew up and then lived in or near the same small village and, after Mom and Dad moved away, kept in close touch by phone and mail. When Mom got sick, Joanne was a constant support from a distance. Mom once said, "She must spend all her time thinking of nice things to do for me!" since there was always something arriving in the mail to give Mom a little lift.
I didn't remember this part, or maybe didn't know — that Mom had written in all these quotes about friendship — but one of Joanne's daughters posted the card (inside and out) on Facebook as a reminder of the special friendship between our mothers.
Joanne was also very good to me after Mom died. She phoned me often, just as Mom would have done. We talked about similar things as Mom and I would have done. She missed Mom, as I did, and shared memories of her and their times together. It was very sweet to get to know her so much better than I ever had, and to know that she was going that extra mile out of her love for Mom. I can imagine Joanne saying to Mom, "If there's anything at all that I can do for you ... " and Mom replying "After I'm gone, think of my children . . . . " Because Joanne certainly did.
Now that Joanne, too, has passed away, all of us (her children and Mom's) like to think of the two of them together again, sharing a joke and having many good laughs.
This brought tears to my eyes. My mum has a childhood friend, Jean, who is in failing health but keeps in touch. She is the only one who still calls me "little girl".
ReplyDeleteYeah. Our moms' friends "knew us when," eh? Joanne used to tell some stories about me as a wee girlie. "Never knew what was going to come out of your mouth," she said, and "My dad loved you because you could talk in full sentences when you were so young." And so on. The things we wouldn't know about ourselves, otherwise!
DeleteThat is the sweetest blog post....
ReplyDeleteI have a friend that I met in grade one. When my son went to a far away city to go to university, he lived with her. When her daughter comes to my end of the province with her baby, she stays with me.
I'm sure Joanne loved you, if not as her own, pretty darned close.
I loved this post.
Thank you.
It's true, those connections run deep and we care for our friends' children very, very much. Glad this was meaningful for you, too.
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