First of the first anniversaries

Today is the first anniversary of my brother's first heart attack, the heart attack that led to his death in his sleep in the early morning hours of December 12, 2003. And so, understandably, I'm finding it extremely hard to concentrate today (and it's not yet 6:30 a.m.).

My oldest daughter has a Hero's Journey paper due Monday, one which has to be based on a movie, and she's chosen "Finding Nemo," which we finally bought on DVD the other day, so I'm going to help her with the project--maybe, maybe, that'll keep my mind busy...

I always heard that the holiday season is the hardest after you've lost someone you love, and in my brother's case, it's so true. He died in December, so the month itself now has negative and sorrowful connotations. I once loved the song "Once Upon a December" from the animated version of "Anastasia"...Now, it brings tears, and memories of my brother...

He was just 34 when he died, and my parents and myself are still struggling with the entire thing...In light of the new blog I began last night, a blog about missing children, I have to say that, dealing with this when the cause is known and when the person in question is 34 years old, is difficult enough. I cannot even begin to imagine the grief the parents of missing children feel...

Okay, enough mindless prattle. Off to face the day...