You know, I've never posted in this thread... never even READ it... then I got a phone call this morning from a relative...
You see, for the past 14 or so years, my step-mom MaryAnn has been the focal point of the family... the one who held everyone together in one way or another. Everyone in the family would call her to tell her what was going on in their lives. If anyone had a question or needed advice, they called my mom. If there was going to be an event that was important to the family, she was the one that organized everything.
Some of you may or may not remember my post back in April about my mother's death... finally losing a 6 year battle with cancer. Now the "hub" of our family is gone, and no one keeps the family info like she did.
This morning, I got to be the surrogate hub, when my cousin's wife calls me and starts to go through everything that's been going on for her family, tells me their problems, and then I gave my advice and dished out the wisdom. For a few minutes, I took up the mantle of my mom, and it felt good. It's not something that I'd want to end up doing for the rest of my life, and frankly I won't be able to since I won't be living in Texas forever... but it felt good for a few minutes to be able to stand in for mom and be there for the family.
That was the first thing that made me smile today... I hope there will be a few more before the sun goes down. :D