Karen

The Buffalo Evening News, Friday, April 14, 1972.  That's the date of the newspaper my mother used to wrap the heirloom dishes in.  I unpacked them on Wednesday, December 23, 2009. One by one, just like my mom wrapped them; thinking, all the while of her wrapping these dishes, and carefully placing them in a box.  She gave me the dishes in 1976; thus began over thirty-three years of untouched storage.

When she packed the dishes, Edie Adams and Natalie Wood were divorcing their husbands; the "war" in Vietnam was raging; Nixon was in the White House; chicken was 29 cents a pound; pork was 89 cents a pound and my mom and dad were newly divorced.  Mom was moving on.  She sold the house.  I was away at college.  At the time I felt I was escaping this dark period by being away at school.  My escapism must certainly have added to her personal grief.  Neither of us really had a heart to heart about all this.   We just didn’t know how.

My mom pulled everything together and moved on... all by herself.  What a tragic period this must have been in her life; more tragic that no one was there to help, not even me.  

As I unpacked the dishes, I could picture mom silently suffering through a very tough period.  She always hid her pain.  She exuded confidence and rarely asked for help.  She was always there, and I took her for granted.  I can picture her smoking her Winston or Pall Mall Gold cigarette and drinking a cup of coffee - personal confidants during this emotional time.  She never asked me to help her move, and I never offered to help her.  The divorce was such a painful thing.  Mom had to move on.  I can't imagine how she did it.

I'm happy she packed these dishes for me and I'm happy to have had the opportunity to unpack each and every dish and think of my mom.  Just a brief snippet of her long and productive life…I love you, Mom.