Nonna

My grandmother died yesterday. She had been sick for a very long time, so it's not really a surprise - after years of cancer and Alzheimers disease, it's not even necessarily a completely sad event.

Nonna (Italian term for grandmother) had a very strong spirit, and she was able to survive with the cancer for significantly longer than the doctors expected (several years instead of a few months). Throughout that time, whenever I saw her she had a smile on her face, and she loved to hear stories, and to laugh. Even when she could no longer remember who someone was, she considered them a friend and would greet them with a warm smile. Over the last little while, I've been wondering how I would deal with such a condition, and I'm very uncertain that I could remain as spirited as she did for so long. To realize that you are dying and that the future holds nothing but weakening and pain seems almost unbearable to me, however she kept smiling and laughing to the end.

To one of the strongest women that I ever knew, I wish a peaceful, and pain-free, rest.

Maria Delorenzi, June 9th, 1922 - February 4th, 2006