“Letters from Mom”
Mom wrote me hundreds of letters and would often send me greeting cards with snipped comics or articles from newspapers or magazines she thought I'd enjoy.
Birthdays were always a big deal for mom. I guess they are for everybody, of course, but mom was really over the top about them. She loved throwing us birthday parties and was a fantastic baker of cakes. When I was 3,000 miles away she would send me cards for days leading up to my birthday and – even though she pretty much never had any money – always managed to send multiple gifts. This is a card she sent me a couple of weeks before my 36th birthday.
On the outside of this greeting card is a photo of a small boy in a baseball cap looking out a window. Above that it says, “Son,” and below it, “Every once in a while in your running-everywhere childhood, I’d see you in a moment of quiet and catch a glimpse of the man you’d one day be…”
Then on the inside is printed, “I knew you’d be a good, loving man. I knew I’d be proud of you… I just never could have guessed how much. Happy Birthday”
Mom underlined a bunch of the words in that inscription for emphasis, and she changed the period to an exclamation point at the end.
6/15/09
Dear David,You’ve asked me several times to write to you. I loved this car [sic] when I saw it. I think it fits you perfectly.
You are an incredible man and a wonderful son. I wish I was more like you. I wish I could be as positive as you.
Sometimes I take out pictures of you and Jen, and I just want to hug you both.
I am so proud of you, and I miss you every day. Stay happy, love much, enjoy life, and think of me once in a while.
Be safe,
Love,
Mom