Deathbed

*** Thirty-nine years ago, my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. She immediately tried to quit smoking. She was 68, and I was 32. Six weeks after her diagnosis, my mother was in the hospital in Vermont, sick with sepsis. The doctor told her they could prolong her life for another few weeks, possibly a month.  When the doctor left, my mother grabbed my arm and pulled me close. “I’m done.