Ancestors

I watched a few minutes of Ann Curry's visit to her mother's country (Japan) this morning. I was so moved by her story as she was talking about her parents and the lessons they taught her as a young girl. And I remembered a few of my own. My mother has always been a stickler for lipstick. For my 13th birthday, I was taken to Merle Norman to get "the works." To this day, I don't think my mother goes to the mailbox without lipstick on. And while some of my childhood memories have either been purposely forgotten or vague, I do remember life before my parents' divorce and what a struggle it was being a teen of a single parent.

Recently during a meltdown about something that wasn't all that big of a deal in the grand scheme of life, my dad said some things to me that made me appreciate him more. And I am thankful he still wants me to be a part of his life after I disowned him for many years after the divorce.

And I wondered how his life was also so horribly shaken when his parents divorced right after the Depression and then his contracting crippling polio, not expected to live through childhood. Being the baby of the family, his older sister took him in several days a week and made sure he was able to visit the Crippled Children's Hospital in downtown Birmingham for rehabilitation. Because his many siblings came to his aid, he was able to exceed everyone's (include the many doctors) expectations.

So to my sisters, thanks for being with me through all the stuff I've gone through and the stuff we've gone through together. I'm glad we've got each other.

I encourage anyone with a few minutes to view Ann's journey: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/26420668#26420668