Some mornings, Betsy and I would wake up, and on each of our nightstands, we''d find a cup that hadn''t been there the night before. Mother had left them there, worried that we''d get thirsty during the night. She just wanted to take care of us. Among the house''s original furnishings was an antique wooden chair, which we kept against the back wall of the living room.


    Whenever we were preoccupied, watching T.V. or playing a game, mother would inch that chair forward, across the room, toward us. Sometimes she''d manage to move it all the way to the center of the room. We always felt sad putting it back against the wall. Mother just wanted to be near us.