The woman who put us through that terrible time?” I stared at her in sheer disbelief.
My mother sighed again.
“Honey, I’m going to do this for two reasons. First, Jesus said to turn the other cheek. As a Catholic who is once again trying to practice my Faith, that is what I intend to do. And the second reason is for you.”
“F-for me?! What do I have to do with this?”
"Someday, when I am gone, Melissa will be the closest relative that you have.”
I shrugged. “So? It didn’t seem like that was such a big deal when we were young. It’s not like you guys made a big effort to get us together or anything.”
My mother hung her head. “What can I say? I wish that I had done things differently then. No doubt her mom feels the same way. Nevertheless, Melissa is your sister, and I want her to be a functioning human being for your future.”
I shook my head, confused again.
“Honey,” she asked me tenderly.
“Don’t you want your kids to have cousins?”
I thought about that. This was far more long-range thinking than I was used to.
“Okay, fair,” I conceded, and then, “but what if her mom denies it? Or gets mad? Or tells you to mind your own business?”
“I won’t tell her my suspicions. I’ll just tell her that you saw Melissa for her birthday,” she replied. “And if she doesn’t want to confide in me, that’s her right. I will tell her my door is always open,” she shrugged. “And I will pray for her and for Melissa.”
I thought about this for a few minutes.
“So if money is the wrong measure of love,” I said slowly, after a while.
“What’s the right measure?”
My mother looked at me.
“Self-sacrifice.”
“Huh?”
“A person who loves someone will sacrifice for their beloved. They will work hard, or go without. They will rather endure anything than hurt their beloved – even if their beloved doesn’t understand or appreciate it.”
I looked at her. She was smiling broadly through her tears.
“So if money is the wrong measure of love,” I said slowly, after a while. “What’s the right measure?”
REGINA | 71