Marian Verneal Calder

My momma, Marian, passed away a year ago, this week. She was born in 1916, which blows my mind to type that.

I have some great pictures of her as a young woman, a bride, and a mom. She was tall, graceful, funny, seldom sedentary, and had a personality that wouldn't quit. My parents were in the hotel business and one of my earliest memories was seeing her at the end of a dark hotel hallway, with light behind her, bending down to pick up a spot of lint off the carpet. She was "beyond tidy".

My mother was a great role-model regarding having mammograms and pap tests every year, but smoked until she was a little past 75. Right before her birthday that year, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a single mastectomy. She bounced back quickly and stopped smoking shortly after her surgery, going "cold turkey"

Dementia was the last hurdle she faced, starting in 1995, as she entered a great nursing center in the small Illinois town where she grew up and later returned after her retirement. I know that many of you have struggled with the decision about a parent's long-term health care. We all pray for a sign that we have done the right thing.

My sign came after my good friends, Michael and Cheri, and I returned to her nursing center, that first day, to see how my mother was doing. All became clear as she swearing and complaining about that fact that there was no phone in her room and how was she supposed to call the front desk and order room service with no phone!! I laughed and I cried and now, I miss my momma.

Please "click" on the pink breast cancer logo, lower down, on the right side of my blog. It will allow you to donate free mammograms to women who cannot afford them. It costs nothing to donate and you can donate everyday. Let's call it "Clicking for Marian".