Family Feuds, Living Wills, Life Support and Plain Hatred

Mary Curtis worked long and hard at being a good mother, Christian and friend. She was a caring woman that volunteered for fifteen years at helping the elderly. Not only that, but when her youngest daughter died at the tender age of nineteen, Mary took in her two babies as her own children. I was one of the two children- and I want the world to know how her 'loving' family took care of her during the last part of her life.

First off, my birth mother died when I was one year old. Mary Curtis did not have to take me in and think of me as her blood daughter, especially since she was under the strain of burying her baby girl. But she did, even while the rest of the family told her to give me and my brother to the state. She had been taking care of me for a while before my mother died, and she felt that we belonged to her- not just with her- actually belonged to her. I love her more than most people can understand because I am eternally grateful that she chose me. Most mothers do not get to choose their children.

During the time that I grew up, I dealt with the fact that my birth mother had died. I was unhappy that I didn't have a normal family with a mom and dad and a two story home. But the holidays were so much worse, and not because I wished for a family that was normal. The holidays were down right horrible because of the family that came to visit. Very rarely did the family visit without it being a holiday. Every one of her children that would come to visit would do so when the chances of running into another family member was low because they hated each other. And I don't mean with a small H.

During the visits, they would talk about some everyday things, but mostly they just talked about each other like dirt then tell why they was so much better. Mom would tell me every year about how much she wished she could have a traditional family holiday. When I asked her why she couldn't, she just said that we didn't have a close family.