I remember 6 years ago when my mother was diagnosed with cancer just before Thanksgiving. My sister and I felt that this would be the last Christmas for us to enjoy Mom and celebrate with her and Dad. We got all of our siblings (total of 8) to agree to come to Fl for a family Christmas. This was not an easy to accompish since we lived in 5 different states at the time. We all got together on Dec. 26 for the first time in over 30 yrs. For 2 days, my family laughed, cried, cheered and played. My Mom and Dad were so joyful that we totally forgot why were we together. The house was filled with more love than I can ever recall. As each sibling was leaving, Mom's smile seemed to get brighter. She was so happy with this totally surprise Christmas present. I sit here with tears in my eyes just recalling these 2 days. Such a joyful remembrance. Mom did pass away that following Jan. but her love that day brought my siblings much closer. Susan in FL