Where Were You When The World Closed In?
And We Saw What Really Mattered: Family, Friends, Faith
My husband and I were in Las Vegas, where my sister-in-law was dying of lung cancer. We’d responded to an anguished phone call from her daughter, asking for help. Hopefully, my sister-in-law might have a couple of months yet. We booked a one-way ticket to Nevada, planning to be there for the duration.
With that in mind, I’d arranged for my other children to keep an eye on their nonverbal younger brother, in his Westchester County group home. He had a busy life, between Day Hab, volunteer jobs, trips to the gym, regular swimming classes and community events. All they had to do was take him out to dinner in lieu of our regular monthly visit.
“No problem, Mom, we got this,” my children chorused. Joe’s schedule was one thing we could all rely on. New York State had the best services for children with special needs. Joe was in a great placement, no worries there.
Our plans were flexible, depending on my sister-in-law’s health. Unfortunately, our visit was brief. She passed away after two short weeks. Her daughter wanted to wait a few months to hold a memorial service, so we flew back to New York.
Our first clue that this “Wuhan virus” had reached the USA was when our…
