Sad Anniversary

Nineteen years ago my older brother died. He was 28 and had been diagnosed with Leukemia three years before and had gone through a few rounds of treatments and, thankfully, some remissions during that time.

If things work out this year, I will be living back in England on the 20th anniversary of his death. That's where he had moved a few years before he became ill. We spent his last Christmas together as a family in my parents' house in Martlesham. He's buried nearby in our family plot in Ipswich.

It's comforting to know I will be able to mark that anniversary by doing something meaningful. We had a special day together shortly before he was diagnosed. My parents were both still in Canada, not yet retired. Jonathan was living in England in their maisonette studying sporadically for a law degree, and I was staying there for a time regrouping after the end of my marriage in Germany, and determining my next steps. We went to visit a church and graveyard in a nearby village. Jonathan took some moody photographs that I still have and with the help of google maps should help me find the place again. I think a visit there will be a fitting way to spend some time just remembering him. I have the makings of a plan.