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Thank you all.  My mom passed this morning around 5:30 peacefully in her sleep. 

what was fluid and dynamic, which could turn on a dime with one misstep or mistake or moment of brilliance, kindness or love, in personal interaction with one another, at any moment- has now been recorded in stone to be unchanged forever... from now until the end of your days the memory will be definitive instead of uncertain when you ask "I wonder what mom would have done?"... that sounds crazy and bereft of value, but there is opportunity now to see the entire picture- her life- in one setting from start to finish, and capture the essence that was her in its entirety.  well, almost it's entirety- there will always be things remaining in mystery you simply don't know about, or that the perspective of others sees differently... yet the beauty is that 'cascade' precisely- the 'little things' that was said or done that were in passing or impulse that gave form and direction to others and enriched their lives.  the big things- where every person stood to be counted and she offered her own response- all of those quietly meld together in the story of her life, and the story of her is now yours and yours alone- everyone else's capture will vary.  

it's for this reason i offer this, and because through the fog of grief these things sometimes escape even our peripheral view, but they follow along behind us ever closing the distance until we finally realize these 'stories' are there and we realize the value not only of the person who passed, but that of their 'story'.  Now- when you encounter something that offers you pause or demands consideration before reaction, instead of picking up a phone or sending an email or calling across the room or whatever form of communication you choose, you have the 'whole tale' to reflect on when you ask yourself "what would mom have done? what advice would she have offered?"... and there is no ambiguity with her response.. in stone and with a smile you have the complete story of her life to guide you.  there is sadness in that, but there is also beauty- and this from a dude who speaks and knows little of 'beauty'.   the beauty is "you know" now.  there is no question.  as YOU navigate through simply 'existing' at times, and so long as your body and soul are adjoined, you have a reference point and fallback...

and for this reason, she is never gone.   

if a prayer should be offered to the living, it should be "may your story live forever" because.... our time is coming too.