Saying good bye to my sister

Probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. 

Linda left us quietly on March 16th in the morning. She died at home just as she wanted to, surrounded by her loving family — her sons, Nick and CJ, her dear friend Stacy, her daughter-in-law, Abby, and her sister, Kathy. Before she left, she received loving goodbyes by phone from her all her siblings; Jim, Chris, Patty and Scott. We sent her off to be with the angels with joy and with sadness. 

Linda lived her life with joy right up until the end, being grateful for every day and sharing her gratitude with those near to her.  Every day was a “great day” A good cup of coffee was a special daily treat, sometimes  a “ride around manhattan” in her wheelchair in the park,  a vodka cocktail at 5 and ice cream whenever she wanted it made her a happy girl.

Linda spent her life giving to others, A nurse for 30 years, she cared for her patients as if they were her family. She always had an empathetic ear for her friends and even for strangers. She helped so many get through difficult times. She cared for her husband, Chris, throughout his long struggle with MS and brought up her two sons to be good loving men. She kept our family together during good times and hard times. She was our mother’s best friend and caretaker for the last 10 years of her life sharing love and laughter.

In our family, Linda is the first sibling to leave us. From 6, now we are 5. She was the best of us and that made it all the harder to get through this initially. But for the 6 months from her diagnosis to her death, she gave us more love than ever. Every one of us took turns being by her side. We each have precious memories of the time we spent caring for her . It felt like an honor to participate in her care. The time we spent together was deeply intimate and full of love, laughter and gratitude.

These are extraordinary times we are in as a country and as humankind. Linda’s spirit flew off just in time to miss this virus and for that we are all grateful. Its hard not to be able to come together to celebrate her life in the ways we wish we could. We hope that once this crisis is over we will be able to organize a gathering of friends and family to honor and celebrate our sister, mother and friend. Meanwhile, she knows that is not possible and is fine with it. We can each remember Linda in our own way as we “self isolate”. For me, its a peaceful time to contemplate this transition to life after Linda. She is with me everywhere and my heart is wide open to receive and send her love.

Please feel free to share your Linda stories, favorite photos and love here. This will be our virtual tribute that can be shared among us and especially with her children. Linda would love that.