Gathering Up the Stuff

Yesterday Yancie and Allie came over to help me gather up the most visible reminders, closet clothes, cosmetics, mostly things that could be seen. She took them home in nice new plastic bins and will probably keep them forever. We debated about the best thing to do - to leave the things out or to move them. Both choices were painful but I did not think I could stand to see everything, especially in the state they were - as scattered detritus of the last weeks of illness.

Both of us cried a lot. But Allie helped, placing items in bags and boxes, some designated as valuable and some as trash. Naturally she had to told what most things were.

I don't remember where we put the half-smoked cigarette we found behind some creams and cosmetics. But we did keep the little Altoids tin of emergency cigarettes that Brenda held on to even after she stopped smoking back in July.

There is still a lot of stuff left. Except for going through necessary papers and disposing of some of the cardboard boxes I won't touch the remainder for a while if ever. She is everywhere. This morning when I was putting up dishes, I placed her plate in the cabinet. I always ate on the blue plate and she ate on the white plate. The white plate came from her mother and she was sentimental about it.