Memories Live On

'Tis the season for some Mommy and Me quality time, even if she's not here to enjoy it.   

Two of my biggest worries when she passed were: 1 - being afraid I'd begin to forget all those times we spent together and 2- letting memories of her strong drive and grit begin to slip away.

I'm starting to believe these things will never happen, as everything's a trigger, in a good way.

Last night, I heard a woman talking about her 97 year-old mother.  "My mom lived to 97 too," I thought to myself. 

This morning, I made a fruit salad and what bowl did I reach for, in my Color Me Mine cabinet?  The triangular one that my mom made a few years ago, when we went for my birthday.

This afternoon, I went to see Pitch Perfect 2 with my girls and laughed thinking about that time my mom and I sat on the first row of the Esquire Movie theatre in our West Oak Lane neighborhood to catch The Boston Strangler. That's not a movie one should sit up close to see, but that's what happens when you come in 45 minutes late.  That's actually not a movie one should see, period.

The memories of Mom keep on coming. 

One of her biggest attributes that I think about often was the fact that she was always willing to invest in those she believed in.    

One such example is the commitment she made to an elementary school in the neighborhood where she and my dad raised their 4 kids and where she became a most dedicated community activist.

My mom was the co-founder and president of the Ogontz Area Neighbors Association and through this organization a core group of residents worked hard to make the neighborhood a better place. They accomplished this in many ways, but two notable achievements were the establishment of a family center and gym program at the Pennell Elementary School and also the creation of scholarships to local high school students entering Temple University.   

My mom was especially passionate about the Pennell School, so much so that a mural of my parents was painted there representing many decades of dedication.  

        

When she was about 90 years old - a few years after my dad passed - she decided she wanted to create a new ritual at Pennell which would both inspire and assist its elementary school graduates. 

Students were asked to write essays in response to the question, "What does Pennell mean to me?"

She (and her kids, including me) would then pick one male and one female to win a Councilman David and Florence Cohen Award for Academic Achievement and Good Citizenship.  The winners were asked to read their essays during the graduation ceremony, followed by the presentation of gifts (in recent years, Kindles). 

My siblings, our kids and I have appreciated these essays as they are a combination of entertaining, eye opening and rewarding.  It is a real privilege to have access to the inner thinking of such fine young men and women.   

  

This is the first year without Mom's input as to who the winner should be, but I know she had faith in us, as she reminded me before she passed that she hopes we continue the tradition long after she's gone.

Soon I'll be in Ocean City with my kids and I'm certain that one of them will ask the annual question, "Remember that time Bubbe played ball with us on the beach?"

She gave so many of us her very best.