Two weeks after my fortieth birthday, Feb. 24th, my mom took her life. She wrote a note saying that she would like her ashes to be spread on the heel of Mt. Hood in a valley by a crystal blue stream. My mom’s life was rocky with disappointments meeting her at the doorstep. Still she took care of us three children in sickness and disease. Mom was my biological Brazilian parent. She was a delivery nurse and brought babies into the world and aided the sick, injured, and dying. During the polio epidemic she took care of my legs and back so that I could walk when I was affected by polio. I painted this picture of Mt. Hood to heal with and to bring closure to her painful death. It gives me the feeling of peacefulness and tranquility and helps me to remember the good things mom did for me and why I continue to love her. Mt. Hood by Sherry M. Joiner
Arts and Writing by Sherry 