The Poppies are Back

It is a terrible thing to be very young and be facing a family disaster that you barely understand and have no ability to prevent. But this is where I found myself when I was six years old and my four year old sister was dying of a double bacterial infection that the doctors were unable to defeat.

Mama’s Mixtape

It seemed like every time she spoke, I would respond with high-pitched whines, ever-rolling eyes, and yeah whatevers. (It really, really is a miracle that I made it to adulthood!) Worse yet, I would argue the opposite of what she was saying. If my mother stated that the sky was blue, I would claim that it had a tint of red. If she commented that it was cold outside, I would swear that I was hot. And if she yelled, “Turn down that #$&* noise!”, naturally, I cranked up the volume. (Yep, I was THAT kid..)