I snapped the photograph above as I sipped my
evening Scotch in my hot tub. In the
photo, I am raising a toast to Helen, my daughter, who made it through a
raucous night while Superstorm Sandy slapped her apartment building and the rest of
the East Coast silly.
This afternoon, after braving the night with
floodwater, wind, and no power in her New York apartment, Helen hiked to a
friend’s domicile (with restored power) to spend the rest of the week. She has been through her share of tragedy
already. She lost her mother, the only
adult family she had remaining on this continent, less than two years ago. She lost a husband to cancer only six months
after they wed. She was a witness to
nine-eleven the first time she lived in New York City. She survived me as her step-father.
So much for a young woman to endure.
--Mitchell
Hegman
A testimony to strength, determination, and triumph of spirit in the face of tragedies and dangers that would have buried lesser men in desolation. A tribute too to the ones who shaped, polished, and faceted the stone, now a diamond brilliantly reflecting light.
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