Alone

I went to the funeral home for a visitation today. I hugged the lady I used to work with as she sobbed on my shoulder. A few years ago, she lost her parents a day apart. Then, her sister. Last year, her only child, who was in his forties. Today, she was preparing to bury her husband of 43 years.

J married her husband when she was 15. She jokes that she got married because her parents told her she was too young to date. She had her child at 16.

J has never been alone. She was a "we" before she ever really became a "me." She was physically and emotionally dependent on her husband. I am concerned about her and am hoping that she will be able to make a life for herself now. It is not going to be easy.