We felt contributor experience with her mother was an appropriate way to begin this month's Journal, which explores some of the most poignant questions of the human heart. Her article originally appeared on www.spirituality.com, an interactive community sharing healing experiences in personal growth, health, and well-being.
Have you ever felt like you were on a deserted island with your problems? I was several thousand miles away from home when I received a call that my mother was dying. After trying and trying to get a flight home, I just couldn't. I slumped to the floor, crying.
Frankly, my husband and daughter were surprised I was this upset. You see, my mother had been abusive to me my whole life, including the last five years when we'd taken care of her in our home. No one understood why I had spent over 50 years trying to achieve a loving relationship with this woman. Now she was in her 90s, had dementia, and couldn't walk.
