February 25, 2009
Maria Papcostaki, Philadelphia, PA
Dear Carolyn, Undoubtedly by now you have heard it a thousand times how very wonderful everything was during the celebration of our book and that we all hold you in gratitude. So I'll tell you another story.
Right before my beloved friend Carol died from ovarian last December, she was moved from the hospital back home to be cared by hospice as well as by her many friends and family. Her sister Sally and brother-in-law came from Ohio to care for her. Sally is one of those women who reliably takes care of all that needs to be taken care of lovingly and caringly but without being maudlin. One can hardly say thank you to her without her demurring.
When I came back from California from our reading, I gave Carol a copy of our book. That night Carol could not sleep and one of our friends who stayed the night, read her some of the pieces from the book, including your preface. The next day, Carol sat her sister by her bedside and read her your piece about sistering. Telling me about this, Carol cried, I think because she was able to find a way to tell Sally what her care has meant to her. And Sally on a separate occasion, without telling me this story, told me how much she liked your piece! Just one of the reverberations!