I had no reason to expect shocks, as I never expected anything from her affairs. I was still working through my thoughts the day after the service when the phone rang.

Her son’s voice was strained and trembling, with a mixture of uncertainty and annoyance that came out almost instantly.

He had discovered a letter while going through a box of his mother’s old mementos. He wasn’t the intended recipient. I was the recipient.I was stopped in my tracks by the gentleness with which she had written inside. She expressed gratitude to me for being patient with her during her most vulnerable moments.

In her last chapter, she clarified that the official arrangements of her estate had been established long ago and that making any changes would have resulted in more stress than she could bear.