Mom was a woman of unusual talent, wit, and intelligence. She had large, haunting blue eyes, a large Roman nose, and a small, thin-lipped mouth. She had a beautiful smile, and was quick to laugh.

More than that, she had charisma of a very rare kind. People wanted to be around her, even when she didn't want to be around them. She did not suffer fools gladly, yet people seemed to take to her even when she turned that razor-sharp wit against them.

Dozens of visitors came to sit with her, or watch the house while Dad ran errands. Despite her reclusive nature she was a popular person. The phone still rings every few minutes, usually someone phoning to express their sympathies.

Mom was a woman of many lives. In the seventies, she had her own humor column in the local paper, which got her cast in a local professional comedy troupe. She performed with them for more than twenty years, in roles ranging from the sexpot to the senile.

For many years she edited a magazine called "Horticulture Today," wrote for several ad agencies, and she also became the PR director for a local hospital.

In the 1980's she had at least twenty articles published in "Cosmopolitan," and also wrote comical erotic fairytales for "Spice" magazine. This while raising three children, doing volunteer work for her church, and working full-time!

In 1988 she founded a New Age bookstore, which grew and tripled in size over the next five years. Her store was the heart of three communities--Wicca, New Age, and recovery. She raised her grandson, and was utterly devoted to him.

One thing I'll say for her, she had a very rich and full life. Any one of those careers would have satisfied me.

She died at home, cared for by a hospice nurse, my sister, and my Dad. In the end she embraced death as she had done life. Dad said, "she's not afraid. She's done this before." She had, too, in Mexico. And before that, too, while giving birth to me.

She wrote her own funeral service, and her own obituary. Very fitting for a woman who had done so much writing.

Her memorial service is this Saturday, and includes a slideshow of pictures throughout her life. Gathering the pictures has been quite a job, and it's given us the opportunity to remember her life. I recommend it for anyone going through a loss.

I will not be wearing black, but instead a denim vest she embroidered during her early Pagan period. It has a Goddess on the back, in tree form, and the moon, sun, and stars, and Mom's favorite animals and plants representing nature. She gave it to me on her deathbed, and I prize it above anything else I own.

There is a lot of work to do. I have to help Dad get his papers in order. I've been commuting there, cleaning house and putting pictures in order, putting them back in the albums we got them from, and helping with putting the slide show in order. I haven't been working or visiting these boards much.