Elizabeth painfully told me about her mother's courageous battle with the
virulent cancer that ravaged her body. Her spirit and her love remained
untouched. Both women felt a profound sadness. Physical separation was
inevitable, quietly but persistently approaching. Elizabeth's father, grieving in
anticipation, grew even more distant, wrapped in his solitude. Her brother,
living in California with a young family and a new business, kept a physical
distance. Elizabeth traveled to Minnesota as often as possible.