Amanda Lemmond recently received a gift that she will cherish forever. Her mother, Barbara Jane Hyatt, passed away 23 years ago from bone cancer. The loving mother was all Amanda had, and the young girl was lost without her. Recently the executor of Barbara’s estate sent Amanda a very precious package: two letters, along with pictures, medals and Amanda’s birth certificate.
The letters, which are over two decades old, allow Amanda’s mother to speak to her once again. In them, Barbara calls her daughter “the bravest little girl I’ve ever known.” She says, “You know I really miss you and not being able to get up with you every day.”
Barbara’s writing, which has provided Amanda a connection to her deceased mother that she never thought she would ever have, speak volumes about a mother’s love for her daughter. They were written in cursive handwriting, and fortunately Amanda had no issue reading them. (Some educators who opt not to teach handwriting in school ought to consider precious opportunities such as this one, when a young person needs to connect with the past, and the only way to do so is by reading cursive.)
Barbara Jane Hyatt, through her writing, tells her daughter, “I love you very, very much. Keep smiling.”
Now Amanda has another reason to do so.
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