Yet since your passing shortly thereafter, I've felt your presence ever near me - a brush of air across my cheek, the wink of a shadow in a shadowless room, the scent of the rain in a cloudless sky. On the edge of dreams I see you with eyes that ache with the image of you, hear your voice with ears still afraid to listen to that last taped story, wishing I knew the why of your absence, knowing I will only after I, too, have gone.

Now on this day seemingly empty of you, I know you are here forgiving my daughterly indiscretions so indiscriminately played upon you. I know you are here, watching over the three of us equally. If I could, I would ask my angel cat to take this living plant I've drawn in my mind and deliver it to you. If I could, I would once again take your hand and tell you over and over how much you mean to me. If I could, I would wrap my arms around you while I share my world with you.