A deeply personal reflection on the day I ironed my son’s burial clothes and how, years later, that same act became a symbol of grief, memory, faith, and a new beginning in my life.

As I prepared for Joshua's visitation on February 18, 2022, I felt strongly led to search through his writings. These two poems, written nearly seven years earlier, were the ones I stood and read that evening just feet away from his coffin. Though he could not have known it at the time, his words became part of the farewell shared with family and friends.

A bittersweet Mother’s Day weekend in 2021 spent with my sons before a major life transition, filled with love, laughter, and lasting memories from a family day in St. Charles, Illinois.