They say life\u2019s a rollercoaster ride, and honey, I can surely testify to that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve lived for about 74 years and five months now, and during this time, I\u2019ve seen my fair share of ups and downs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One day, life\u2019s great. Everything\u2019s goin\u2019 according to your wishes, and the next, somethin\u2019 happens that crushes your entire world down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But you gotta keep swimmin\u2019. You gotta keep goin\u2019 with the flow. That\u2019s what life is, y\u2019all. That\u2019s what life is all about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No matter how old you are, you\u2019ll still have somethin\u2019 to worry about. Somethin\u2019 that keeps you goin\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My name\u2019s Martha, and I spent most of my life bein\u2019 a mother to my three children. Betty is my oldest, Thomas is my middle child, and Sarah\u2026 she\u2019s my baby girl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lord knows I gave \u2019em everything I had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Every birthday, every Christmas, every scrape and bruise, I was there with open arms and a ready smile. Their daddy and I worked ourselves to the bone to make sure they had opportunities we never did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We weren\u2019t rich by any means, but we managed to put all three through college. Lord, I still remember the day each one of \u2019em walked across that stage. Me sittin\u2019 there in the crowd, dabbin\u2019 at my eyes with a handkerchief, heart just about ready to pop from pride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But as they grew up, got married, and had families of their own, I noticed they started havin\u2019 less and less time for me. The phone calls that used to come daily became weekly, then monthly.
The Sunday dinners at my house dwindled down to just holiday visits. And when my grandkids came along (seven of \u2019em, if you can believe it), well, they were even busier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom, we\u2019ve got soccer practice,\u201d Betty would say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom, Thomas Jr. has a recital,\u201d Thomas would explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom, work is just crazy right now,\u201d Sarah would sigh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I understood. I really did. Life moves on, and young folks have their own lives to lead. Then the great-grandkids started arrivin\u2019. Now, they\u2019re three little blessings I barely know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When my Harold passed away six years ago, that\u2019s when things really changed. For two years, I tried to manage on my own in that big empty house we\u2019d shared for nearly fifty years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But after the second fall, when I laid on the kitchen floor for hours before the neighbor found me, my children decided it was time for the nursin\u2019 home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s for the best, Mom,\u201d they all agreed. \u201cYou\u2019ll have people to look after you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What they meant was that they didn\u2019t have time to look after me themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve been here at this nursin\u2019 home for four years now.
When I first arrived, I was scared half to death. My room was tiny compared to the house I\u2019d left behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those first few months, I cried myself to sleep most nights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But slowly, things changed. I met Gladys from down the hall, who taught me to play bridge. Then there was Eleanor, who shared my love for murder mysteries, and Dotty, who\u2019d sneak in homemade cookies when her daughter visited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We became a little family of our own. All of us abandoned in one way or another by the children we\u2019d raised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My kids and their families? They barely visited. Less than five times in four years, if you can believe it. Sometimes they\u2019d call on birthdays or holidays, but most often it was just a card in the mail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn\u2019t mind. It\u2019s just how life is, right? At least that\u2019s what I told myself whenever I saw other residents with visitors while I sat alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the moment my health started declinin\u2019, everything changed. Suddenly, they were always around, dotin\u2019 on me, actin\u2019 like the most carin\u2019 family ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Betty brought flowers. Thomas asked about my medication. Sarah actually held my hand while the doctor spoke. My grandkids even showed up, though most of them seemed more interested in their phones than in their old grandma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The reason? My inheritance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, they were all fightin\u2019 for a bigger slice of the pie (and to be fair, it\u2019s a pretty big pie, y\u2019all). Me and Harold weren\u2019t no fools with our money. We saved when savin\u2019 wasn\u2019t easy, invested when folks said we was crazy, and now that ol\u2019 house is worth three times what we paid for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Plus, there was the life insurance.
It happened on a Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Betty had called to check on me, and we\u2019d had a nice enough chat. I told her about Gladys winnin\u2019 at bingo three times in a row (that woman is either blessed or cheatin\u2019), and she told me about her daughter\u2019s dance recital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When we finished talkin\u2019, I was about to hang up when I realized Betty hadn\u2019t ended the call on her end. I could hear voices in the background\u2026 Betty, Thomas, and Sarah, along with some of my grandkids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom\u2019s sounding better today,\u201d Betty said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s good,\u201d Thomas replied. \u201cBut we should still be prepared. Dad\u2019s plot is paid for, and I\u2019ve already reserved the one next to him for Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDid you get the family discount from the cemetery?\u201d Sarah asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Someone laughed. \u201cI did better than that. I got them to throw in the headstone engraving for free. Just needs the date.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My heart nearly stopped. They were discussin\u2019 my burial arrangements like they were plannin\u2019 a picnic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHas anyone paid for the monument yet?\u201d one of my granddaughters asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot yet,\u201d Betty said. \u201cNo one wants to front the money.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSomeone can cover the costs now, and I\u2019ll pay you back from the inheritance!\u201d my daughter joked, and they all laughed like it was the funniest thing they\u2019d ever heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I hung up the phone with shakin\u2019 hands. Is this what I get? After sacrificin\u2019 my entire life for them? After every diaper I changed, every tear I wiped away, every dream I put aside so they could have better? They\u2019re countin\u2019 the days until I\u2019m gone and dividin\u2019 up what I\u2019ll leave behind?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I cried a lot that night in the hospital bed, but then my sadness was replaced with determination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve never been one to just sit and cry for long. After 74 years on this earth, you learn a thing or two about handlin\u2019 tricky situations.
That very night, I asked the nurse for an extra pillow, drank all my water, and took my medicine without complaint. By the end of the week, I was sittin\u2019 up. And by the end of the month, the doctor was surprised at how quickly I\u2019d bounced back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re a fighter, Martha,\u201d he told me with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou have no idea,\u201d I replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once I was back in my room at the nursin\u2019 home, I made some phone calls. First to my lawyer, then to my bank, and finally to my children.
\u201cI need to talk to all of you about my will,\u201d I told them. \u201cI\u2019m gettin\u2019 old and after this scare, well, I want to make sure everything\u2019s in order. Can you come to the nursin\u2019 home this Saturday? Bring the grandkids and great-grandkids too. It\u2019s important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lord have mercy, you ain\u2019t never seen folks drop plans so quick in your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Betty canceled a hair appointment. Thomas rescheduled a golf game. Sarah found a babysitter for her dog. And every last one of my grandkids suddenly had no plans for Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Saturday arrived, I had the nurses set up chairs in the community room. As my family filed in, including some of whom I hadn\u2019t seen in years, I sat at the head of the table. My attorney, Mr. Jenkins, sat beside me with a briefcase full of papers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMama, you\u2019re lookin\u2019 so much better,\u201d Betty said, kissin\u2019 my cheek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThank you for comin\u2019, all of you,\u201d I said, smiling sweetly. \u201cI know how busy y\u2019all are.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I nodded to Mr. Jenkins, who opened his briefcase and pulled out a document.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is my will,\u201d I explained. \u201cIt divides everything equally between my three children, with provisions for my grandchildren and great-grandchildren.\u201d I paused, noticin\u2019 how they all leaned forward slightly. \u201cMr. Jenkins will read it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As he read through the details about the house, the savings, the investments, and the life insurance, I watched their faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They looked relieved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When he finished, Thomas said, \u201cThat sounds very fair, Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI thought so too,\u201d I nodded. \u201cBut then I realized it wasn\u2019t fair at all.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their smiles faltered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMr. Jenkins, please read the new will.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He pulled out another document. \u201cI, Martha, being of sound mind, do hereby bequeath the following: To my children Betty, Thomas, and Sarah, I leave one dollar each. To each of my grandchildren, I also leave one dollar each.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The room erupted in confused protests. Betty\u2019s face turned red. Thomas stood up. And Sarah? She just started cryin\u2019.
\u201cWhat is this, Mama?\u201d Betty demanded. \u201cIs this some kind of joke?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo joke,\u201d I said calmly. \u201cI done pulled most my money outta the bank, sold the house, and gave a big ol\u2019 chunk of it to the nursin\u2019 home\u2019s Resident Support Fund and the Cancer Research folks\u2026 in memory of your daddy. Figured it\u2019d do more good there than sittin\u2019 in y\u2019alls greedy lil\u2019 pockets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut\u2026 but that\u2019s our inheritance!\u201d one of my grandkids blurted out.
\u201cIs it?\u201d I asked, my voice suddenly sharp. \u201cFunny, I thought it was my money. Me and your grandpa worked hard for that money. Scrimped and saved every penny while y\u2019all were too busy livin\u2019 your lives to visit me more than five times in four years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The room went silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI heard y\u2019all, you know. Talkin\u2019 about my cemetery plot and headstone. Laughin\u2019 about payin\u2019 for it with my inheritance. Did any of you ever think that maybe I wasn\u2019t quite ready to be buried yet?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their faces showed shock. And then shame. Good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWith what\u2019s left of my money, I\u2019m hirin\u2019 a full-time caretaker, and I\u2019m goin\u2019 to see the Grand Canyon. And Paris. And all those places your father and I dreamed about but never saw because we were too busy raisin\u2019 you and payin\u2019 for your braces and your college and your weddings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I looked around at their stunned faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow, if y\u2019all don\u2019t mind, I\u2019m feelin\u2019 a bit tired. Gladys and I have bingo at four, and I need to rest up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After they left, Gladys wheeled herself over to me. \u201cYou really givin\u2019 all your money to charity?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I winked at her. \u201cMost of it. Kept enough for those trips, though. Wanna come to the Grand Canyon with me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She grinned. \u201cYou bet I do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, I\u2019m not tellin\u2019 this story to suggest you shouldn\u2019t be kind to your children. Lord knows I don\u2019t regret a single moment I spent raisin\u2019 mine. And I\u2019m not sayin\u2019 don\u2019t leave them an inheritance either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What I\u2019m sayin\u2019 is teach your children that love isn\u2019t measured in dollars and cents. Teach them that you\u2019re more than just what you can give them. And remember that bein\u2019 kind doesn\u2019t mean bein\u2019 a doormat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As for me? I leave for the Grand Canyon next month. Turns out, life\u2019s too short to wait around for a headstone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
They say life\u2019s a rollercoaster ride, and honey, I can surely testify to that. I\u2019ve lived for about 74 years and five months now, and during this time, I\u2019ve seen my fair…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7139,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-viral-tales"],"yoast_head":"\n