My Tragic Death
All my kids know about the time I had a reaction to nose drops as an infant that led to my death, temporarily, thank god. Anyway, on the way to Benihana's for Lukas's birthday party, Annika asked me to tell the story to the other kids in the car. Statements like, "Mommy, tell them about the time you died" will usually get the attention of any kid, even mine. But the most enthralled of all was Kathryn, one of Annika's friends. So I recounted the entire story in great detail: how my grandmother found me, what she told my mother, how my mother rushed in to resuscitate me, how they went like a million miles an hour to the hospital, my mom still doing CPR, and so on. Watching Kathryn's eyes widen event by event, adjective by pessimistic adjective only motivated me to include as many morbid or ominous details as I went along. She asked me several probing questions until finally, the story was finished. I could tell by the expression on her face that she wanted to ask just one more question but paused perhaps out of fear for what the answer might be. Finally, in a very solemn and hesitant voice, she asked, "Ddid you--um--survive." Naturally, I could resist reply in just as solemn a voice, "No, I didn't." Her eyes dropped and her heart sank. Then she said in a voice replete with compassion, "I'm so sorry." Kids are so funny. I guess she thought a ghost was driving her to the party.