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Wednesday, January 30, 2019

"Broken Glass" by Joshua K



The day is November 9th of 2018. Bright, luming rays of sunshine come through my
windows as I lie in bed, not yet awoken to begin the day. For a brief moment, when I open my eyes, the bliss of such a beautiful day overshadows the journey ahead. In that moment, I merely acknowledge my surroundings and feel the blessings of another day. 

Following a long and contemplative shower, I embark on my journey. Phone calls are coming in left and right. I, myself, take the liberty of answering every single one so that my sister does not endure the hardships of such conversation. “What happened?” , “I can’t believe it!” , “Just a week ago we had a conversation...”. Disbelief and misunderstanding fills my ears for hours as I call aunts, cousins, friends. All these people without a clue of what had just happened or why. The day before, my mother, April Kidwell, had lost her life to the effects of poor decisions. 

These people did not see nor hear any of the hardship I had endured. They merely “sympathize” and move on. These people were not around when the mountain lions were on the roof. These people were not around when there were ghosts in the house. These people were not around when we almost drove off of the freeway because she was so heavily intoxicated. These people did not live the life I had. If they had just known or seen the pain and suffering she had endured, we all may have made a difference. If I could’ve been the son she needed, maybe she would’ve stopped living so fast. 
 Although, then again, one must not live off of what-ifs. 

From birth to the moment my mom’s heart no longer beat, I was there. Feeling the heat leave from the body of somebody you once loved is undescribable. All the moments and memories ever created with that person remain but the toll of the loss is immense. Unfortunately, as I have begun to find out, even the memories do not always reside positively. Frequent nightmares of the breathing machines and heart monitors continue to haunt me. Once during class I had even heard a noise similar to the machines which led me closely towards a panic attack. They say “bad memories fade”, but they are still, to this day, prevalent. 

Growing up, Mom was the one who taught me habits for school that I still use to this day. I remember her quizzing me with flashcards for multiplication. Cigarette in one hand and flash card in the other. To many, the thought of cigarettes around children is horrendous, but my mom was always avoiding when she could. After all, a nicotine addiction does need its fill regardless of situation. Among the use of cigarettes throughout my life, Mom fell upon many other substances for a crutch. 

Methamphetamine, vicodin, and alcohol all played a role in her declining state. Although beating both the meth and the vicodin with rehabilitation, alcohol became her eventual demise. Of all her poisonous habits, she still had the biggest heart of anybody you would ever know. I recall once her giving a new friend $600 to borrow for a “head start”. Although I warned her of bad intentions, her heart and willingness to believe in others overshadowed her fear of loss. As I feared, my mother never saw that money again. 

Today and everyday forward, I think of my mom. From time to time I look at a picture of me and my parents before the divorce and downward spiral. My mom has her arms around her little boy, protecting him as she always had. I smile and think of the good times we both shared. The jokes, cooking, even the TV shows we shared in watching all fill my mind. I am grateful she
gave the time to her children and gave all she could for her children. The harsh reality I had to face occurred to me in a church at the hospital. My uncle, Mom’s brother Wade, said to me “she hasn’t been happy for a long time”. In that moment above all else, the reality of the situation set in. I knew it was time. 

My sister, the next of kin to my mother, was the sole bearer of the decision to metaphorically “pull the plug”. Me, Brianna (my sister), and my Mom’s boyfriend at the time (Jason), all decided it was the right thing to do. Mom had been on what they call “all means necessary” treatment. She was maxed out on medication, breathing tube treatment, everything. The doctor, whom I disliked very much, had given us one alternative which would be a temporary fix with an extremely high risk of bleeding out. Even if she had survived, she would’ve been disabled for the rest of her life. With disability in mind and the ass-kicking that would ensue if she were to survive in such a manner, we knew Mom’s decision and took action. They removed the medication and turned off the heart monitor noise so as not to cause more trauma. We all watched her rate drop. From 100, to 70, to 50, the process was depressing and very extensive. There was by no means a rush for Mom to pass but the slow decline was by far much worse than any movie has ever depicted. There is no mere plug pull. There is no immediate death. There is just a long, solemn line that gets closer, and closer to flattening. When the nurse came in and declared Mom dead, tears rang out from almost all whom encompassed the room. The only two not crying were me and Brianna. Not because we were not sad or because we did not care, but rather we were relieved for Mom to finally be at peace. We knew that the declaration of death meant Mom had begun her new chapter in Heaven. Regardless of what religion you may believe
in, a hope for something greater is a necessity in my eyes. Without hope, there is no reason to push forward. Without moving forward, there is no hope.

19 comments:

  1. Joshua, I am so, so sorry for your loss. I cannot even say begin to imagine what it would be like to lose my mother because I simply refuse to, but your piece makes me realize that she won't be here forever. From your written words I know you are so very strong, to continue on with your days and schooling, and ultimately being able to let your mother go so that she can rest in a better place. That is the definition of love and selflessness. I truly appreciate you sharing this very personal and painful part of your life- from a reader's standpoint it makes me have so much respect and trust in you as a writer. You mentioned that bad memories are still prevalent, yet I hope you make many more good ones to help ease the pain.
    Lastly, I appreciate your quote: "...a hope for something greater is a necessity in my eyes. Without hope, there is no reason to push forward. Without moving forward, there is no hope." May your mother rest in peace.

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  2. Joshua, this was courageous and candid. You are a talented writer and this piece was a concise and expressive example of said talent. I commend you, your writing, and your strength.
    All my love, Ashley Sierra-Tillery

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  3. Josh I seriously have no words to describe how well you reenacted this traumatic event. Although I can't relate to you one bit, I would like to offer up my deepest condolences and praise for keeping your composure because if it were me I'd most likely cry everyday of my life because of the things you grew up with and the things you've had to feel after words. Bless your soul for being the person you are today. - Joshua Perez

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  4. I’m sorry to hear about your mom. Thank you for sharing this story as it must have been very tough for you to endure this experience. Losing a loved one is hard and you conveyed your experience well. I felt the emotion that went into this piece and I agree with you that everyone needs have hope for something in their life.

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  5. To begin, I'm so sorry for your loss. It's a terrible thing to have someone so close to you leave so abruptly especially someone you love so much. From the way you described your mother, she seemed like a very compassionate person who spread her kindness to all those around her. As you mentioned, she had her flaws, but that definitely shouldn't take away from the positive impact she left on those around her. I'm sure that this tragedy will be something that troubles you throughout your life, but I sincerely hope that you'll continue being the great person your mother raised you to be. Don't dwell on the negative memories, but focus on the good ones and use those as strength to keep pushing forward in life. Once again, my condolences. - Eugene Kim

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  6. Josh this piece really gave me a deeper look into your personal life and a tiny sip of the ocean of pain you must've experienced going through all of this throughout your life. Everyone has problems, and your optimism and perseverance through such a difficult experience is astounding and I agree with your conclusion about hope. No matter the subject matter, you are en excellent writer and I felt this piece. Keep up the great work Josh.

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  7. This was heart-wrenching to read. It takes tremendous courage to share such an impactful event. I’m extremely sorry that you and your family had to experience that magnitude of pain. Your depiction of the incident was concise but impactful and your hope for something better is uplifting.

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  8. Joshua your personal reflection was written very well. They perspective in which you wrote the reflection in, was as if you were telling me in person. Lastly I am sorry for your loss. If you need prayer consultation please let me know. Overall good job on writing this personal reflection.

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  9. Thank you for sharing such a personal piece with everyone because it reveals a side of you that everyone admires. You have so many great attributes about yourself and I believe that is the reason why you soon realized that hope is a necessity in life. Great job.

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  10. Your story was so detailed in a way that it let me feel as if I was there in the moment that everything changed for you. I really liked your ending and and the positivity you have associated yourself with. Please keep that positive outlook on life. I am truly sorry for your loss. I cannot say that I feel your pain because I do not know the level of pain that you went through, but I can say I feel for you and wish you the best and all happiness in life.

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  11. Josh, this has been the most touching and emotional blog I have read all year. The way you progressed the story was amazing. It was not the basic "oh pity me" story but an emotional struggle you have faced and still have to battle to this day. I am sincerely sorry for your loss and all the struggles you have gone through. Such a great piece of work, thank you for sharing your story. -Paul Aureus

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  12. Joshua, thank you for sharing such a personal and raw event in your life. I really appreciate you giving us an insight into who your mom was and the impact she has had on you and how she helped create the person you are today. I really enjoyed how you allowed the story to progress from delivering news to then letting us know what the news was. I'm so sorry for your loss I know the pain never really goes away it just gets more bearable.

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  13. To be honest, Josh, by the end of this piece I felt a flood of tears rushing down my cheeks. This is so raw, emotional, and real, it felt almost as if I was reading a narrative from a renowned author telling a fictional account, but I had to bring myself back to reality that this actually happened to you and the rest of your family and friends. I understand the sentiment of people "sympathizing and moving on" after news comes of a loss, so I will avoid doing that by saying how truly strong both you and your mother are. Thank you for being vulnerable enough to share this account with us, it personally opened my eyes to how life comes and goes, and the chilling effect it has that can last a lifetime. I'm sorry. I hope your mother is perfectly happy and at peace, she deserves it. The close of this reflection is what really tied everything together, and is the greatest advice one could ever give: "Without hope, there is no reason to push forward. Without moving forward, there is no hope." May you continue to push forward in your life, and your mother be a source of hope for you to thrive.

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  14. after i read this, for a while i was at lost for words. this is such an emotional and powerful piece. josh surely your mother is at peace in heaven and watching over her son who she is so proud of. keep that positive outlook on life because you are such a strong, uplifting and hopeful person. with love and finger guns - saima

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  15. Joshua your blog actually moved me to tears, I am so incredibly sorry for your loss. Your writing was so personal and raw and I admire your bravery for sharing such a personal story about yourself. -Sofia Canseco

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  16. wow....Josh I really admire you for being the strong person you are today, I give you my deepest condolences. Thank you for sharing a raw and emotion part of your life. Keep your head high and keep moving forward. You have a bright future ahead of you and I'm sure your mom is proud of having an amazing son.
    -Jasmine Hernandez

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  17. This was so raw and emotional and I commend you for being able to write about it and share it with others. I know exactly what it feels like to lose a parent to "bad habits", and recognize it does not just get better, it's such a slow painful process that never truly will go away. I'm glad you shared this with us though, knowing it would've been hard. -Leslie Rodriguez

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  18. This piece was so captivating not only by the excellent writing but because of the pure emotion put into it. I have so much respect for the courage needed to write about something as tragic as this. It's not always easy moving on but I hope you know that your courage helped inspire and remind us that we can still have hope and move forward after such events.

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  19. Your story was not only well written but also soul wrenching. I respect you for being able to write out such a personal and visceral part of your life. Thank you, not only for the great read, but also for displaying the courage that keeps your chin up even, when it seems like the whole world is doing its best to bog you down. I do hope your mother is in a better place and you have my condolences for your loss. ~Ryan Kang

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