5 Minute Friday- She

On Fridays, a group of writers gather to share their thoughts on a single word. Today's 5 Minute Friday prompt is "She".  Thanks again for another beautiful one, Lisa-Jo! Thinking about my Darlin today and missing her as always.

She

She would have been 90 years old tomorrow.  It's been three years since we said goodbye, and I miss her every day.  Her smile.  Her laugh.  Her whiskey voice.

She made me feel like the most important person in the world.

She loved high heels, Estee Lauder perfume, and the Blessed Mother.

She prayed for me.

She played tea party with me.

She could bake better than anyone I know.

She thought I looked like Cindy Crawford and sang like Julie Andrews.  I doesn't matter if neither of these things are true, because in her mind, they were.

She taught me how to play cards.  How to cook chicken.  How to chop a green pepper.  How to make a Jello mold.  How to pray the rosary.  How to be a friend.

She was my best friend, after all.

She let me drink Diet Pepsi and watch Night Court and wear tanning oil and eat as many pretzels as I wanted.

When I was four.

She taught me that preparing food is all about how you present it.  Or giving a gift, or anything lovely for that matter.

She always wore nylons.

She told me stories.  We laughed and listened and cried and laughed some more.  And watched Jeopardy, and did the crossword.

We still did all of those things together until the very end.

She smoked for a long time.

I used to try to steal her cigarettes.  When I was six, I took all of them out of a crumpled gold soft pack and replaced them with 20 rolled up pieces of paper that said, "I love you" and "Don't smoke!"

She quit.

She started again.

She covered it up with the Estee Lauder perfume.  :)

We called her out.

She quit again for good.

She still got lung cancer.  Cancer sucks.

I miss her every day.

She made me feel like the most important person in the world.  She thought I was beautiful and lovely and smart and funny and stylish and wonderful and bright.

And because of her, I was.

She was.

STOP