Library

I have had at least three mothers in my life. During my childhood, my mother was the glamorous party hostess, the ambitious "Blackberry Lady" and "Mushroom Lady." By my adolescence, she was schizophrenic and a prisoner of auditory hallucinations. She escaped the war and immigrated to the United States. How did she, who was once tough and bright, transform into this? I began to explore the origins of her mental anguish, hoping to understand the forces that "killed" her. Thus, my third mother was born. Not only did I discover what brought this woman down, I also discovered what she was born for. Deep in the pursuit is a secret family past and the wandering life of a generation of women. I collected the fragments about her and them and wrote this story about survivors. Some people want certain pieces of history erased. But I know that "survival is never a given" and I must speak up for those whom society deems not worthy of tears.