[at-l] Happy Mothers Day

[DaRedhead@aol.com (DaRedhead@aol.com)]

http://friends.backcountry.net/redhead/mom/mom.html

Many of you knew Mom.  Many of you have seen this link before.  Many of you 
haven't, and have a dream of hiking "someday".  Some of you are hiking right 
now.

Today is my second Mothers Day without my mother.  (It hasn't gotten any 
easier).  She once belonged to this list.  She used to be here.  She used to 
be my best friend.  Then she got cancer, again.  We had a dream, after her 
first bout with cancer, to hike the Trail in '00.  (Actually it was supposed 
to be '03, but after Trail Days in '98, and Mikes slideshow, we moved it up, 
because as Mom said, you never know, we might not have that much time, and we 
made hard choices concerning family obligations, because we WERE going to do 
this, because it was important to us . . . and whoever didn't understand at 
the time probably would have after the fact, including the kids) .

Obviously her death in '99 prohibited that.  Still - when I look back on the 
archives, (thank you, Ryan) it's like looking back on a little piece of her.  
I can read her comments and other peoples reactions (posts) and it makes me 
feel better, somehow, that she was a part of this, and a part of the dream, 
and a part of these friends, and had the soul of a hiker, before she died.  

I just wanted to remind the people that met her that I miss her.  And I 
wanted to remind the people I don't know, that are struggling with "when" 
would be a good time to thru hike . . . sometimes "now" is all you have.  If 
you're waiting til "then" . . . it may never come.

Happy Mothers Day to all of those who are - and all of those who want to be.  
And for the rest, (and everyone else) if you still have the good fortune to 
have your Mom in your life - remind her how much you appreciate that, today.

The Redhead




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