ObitLanguage--died again on August3, 2015 at 7:09 a.m. I heard aboutmy mother's difficult nights. I hireda night person. By the time I gotthere, she was always gone. Thenight person had a name but was likea ghost who left letters on a shorethat when brought home becameshells. Couldn't breathe, 2:33 a.m.Screaming, 3:30 a.m. Calm, 4:24a.m. I got on all fours, tried to pick upthe letters like a child at an egg huntwithout a basket. But for every letterI picked up, another fell down, as ifprotesting the oversimplification ofmy mother's dying. I wanted the nightperson to write in a language I couldunderstand. Breathing unfolding,2:33. Breathing in blades, 3:30.Breathing like an evening gown,4:24. But maybe I am wrong, howdeath is simply death, each slightlydifferent from the next but the finalstrike all the same. How the skinresponds to a wedding dress in thesame way it responds to rain. Excerpted from Obit by Victoria Chang All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
