Gabriella

Facebook | Thelma Zirkelbach

Thanksgiving was a beautiful, clear fall day. The morning felt peaceful. I baked and read The Handmaid's Tale for my book club. Hadn't read it in years but I love it.

Dinner was at my daughter-in-law's sister's house. It was a noisy family gathering with lots of good food and nine (yes, nine) pies. And best of all, it was my granddaughter Gabriella's 11th birthday. She was born on Thanksgiving Day. We went to the hospital soon after her mom went into labor and I thought I would never do this, but I stayed in the room for the birth and had the joy of seeing her whoosh into the world, with a crop of black hair and huge brown eyes.

She was so dear to Ralph. One of his last wishes was to see her one more time. He was on the bone marrow transplant floor at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and no children are allowed, but his wonderful doctor arranged for him to go downstairs in a wheelchair. It was a sweet but heartbreaking moment to see them together for the last time. When we went back to the floor, he said, "I hope she won't forget me."
I repeated this to Gabriella a year or so after he died, and she said, "How could I forget Popo? I loved him. If I could have one wish, I'd wish for him to come back to you."

Please, please click on the link to Facebook above. You'll see a video of Gabriella singing a song she dedicated to her granddad.

See you in seven.