The Dry Cough

I can't remember exactly when it started, but I have memories of Mom with this dry, fairly persistent cough back when she and we kids were living with my Aunt Kathy (around 1994). It was a horrible period in her life as the family was separated and she (along with everyone in the family) suffered from financial hardship after Dad had been laid off. She was learning about a different place in the world. It was the place of poverty. Her new place in the world was a transition from the place she had been in before. Not only had the rules changed, but the whole game had changed! Mom used to say she could finally understand the phrase "the grinding wheel of poverty." One tough break leads to another and then another. Before you know it you're "at the bottom of the heap." Mom was stressed. She was trying to figure out what was the best thing to do for her family. She had no choice but to lose all of her pride and accept other peoples' charity along with its stipulations. She may have lost her pride as others dictated what she could have or do or eat, but she never lost her diginity. What she did begin to lose, however, was her health. I would learn more about that later...