happy 90th mom, I'm holding down the fort!

Today would have been my mom's 90th birthday. She died in 1984 at the age of 62 from lung cancer.

I won't dwell on losing her, i will celebrate her life. Vera was one of 4 daughters born to Langille and Helen Patterson. When my mom was a youth, her father (my grandpa) died. My grandma raised the girls all by herself... a tough task in the 20's.

My mom met my dad and married him July 25th, 1949. They settled in San Diego raising a family (my brother and I) and pretty much enjoyed life. Mom didn't always have it easy though, as health problems plagued her as long as I can remember. She had Tuberculosis before I was born, and had to spend some time in a Sanitorium. Thats a place where people (usually with TB) were admitted long term to deal with the Tuberculosis.

During that time, she was one of the first people that was accepted for a trial for a new treatment for tuberculosis. Basically, the way she explained it to me... they put something akin to 'ping pong balls' into her lung to keep it inflated. it worked well until i was 16 and the 'ping pong balls' burst thru her lung. She ended up having the lung removed. But did she ever complain? NEVER. as long as i was alive, this woman never had a negative word to say about anyone or anything.

The remaining lung ended up getting cancer in it, and thats what took her from us. She was on oxygen the rest of her life, but it never slowed her down. So many health problems could have wiped out a normal person, but this woman was a rock. She made clothes for us, took us to Disneyland, the zoo, to museums with no complaints. She hosted a daily tea for her friends. They all used to sit around watching General Hospital and discuss how much they loved Steve Hardy and Nurse Jessie. I can remember coming home from school and there would be cookies for me and i would sit with these women and watch the soap, trying to be 'one of the women' :)

I miss my mom so much, but she's not in pain any longer, and for that I'm grateful. I just wish Jennifer could have known her. Hmm, maybe in some way, through me, she does!