It's painful to see strangers be so callous about something that's extremely personal to you. But once you get past the initial emotional reaction, you remember that people die every day -- in accidents, by suicide, of old age, sometimes in tragic and horrific ways -- and except for the handful of people whose lives have been personally touched by that death, the rest of the world doesn't care. And you can't take that personally.

Sometimes people are strangely suspicious and paranoid. Or perhaps I'm insufficiently so. Sometimes people are illogical and unintelligent. And a lot of times, people just don't care about other people -- whether they know them or not. I care too much. And there are lots of us, too.

I got a phone call today that brought back long ago memories 15 years old now. And as much as I'm grieving, it reminded me that other people's lives are moving on -- or trying to. I can't help my mom, but maybe I can help one of them.

Mom & Jess in front of Niagra Falls, 1980.