Day before departure

Strolling down the street, I could overhear mum talking to a friend's mum behind me, saying how special I am, and how proud she is of me. I caught just words here and there, not that I was eavesdropping, but just within earshot. I walked on quicker so that the words became just garbled sounds I could not decipher.

It the night before mum's departure from Canada, her suitcase is not yet packed, but we have the day tomorrow to do just that. This time tomorrow, I will be sitting here alone by myself. Mum will have been long gone and far away over the Atlantic. All that will remain is her scent on the bed I offered her to sleep on...

I think she will miss Canada, a place she has been growing more fond of with every passing day. Most of all, I think she will miss me, and the little things that I have tried to do for her to make her feel at ease and comfortable. She tells me, and has told me many times, she sees and appreciates all the little things... constantly asking if she is hungry or thirsty, being concerned if the sores in her arms have returned, worried if she sleeps well at night, wondering whether she is feeling happy and enjoying herself... It is how I show my love and affection, and (despite the occasional grumpiness and impatience) there is much I can give when I can. She knows it. She feels it.

She was telling my friend's mum how special I have been, even as a child. I did not feel proud or full of myself hearing that. I just felt touched, very touched that my attempts to make mum feel loved and cared for have not gone unnoticed. All the little things I do, they are what I know to do best. They are the little gestures and intentions that replace the "I love you, mum", which I've always found difficult in saying out loud. Just now, I wrote to my brother, hoping that they can spend some precious, quality time together, and reminding him how lucky we are to have our mother to hold and to cherish.

Little does mum, who is lying next door and fast asleep, know that I have another little surprise for her before she leaves...