Dorothy Ann Miller

I loved her from the moment I met her. She was warm and inviting and she gave me the job of making the stuffing at our Thanksgiving celebrations every year. We are so sorry for your loss. Our deepest heartfelt condolences to you all.

There are lots of old jokes about mothers-in-law. And in the 40 years I´ve known Ditty, our relationship bared no resemblance to any of them. In fact, since before Marty and I were married, she was simply my other mother.

In four decades, we never spoke a harsh word to each other. There were no heated moments. And I have no doubt that she shut down my would-be detractors at every opportunity.

My dogs and her inability to travel made our visits less frequent as the years passed. The brief visits when I traveled to and from the beach were never enough. I both envied and was frustrated by her independence and desire to live alone. We´d considered putting an addition on the house so we could care for her, but she wasn´t going to leave Salisbury by car.

In years so punctuated by sickness and loss, this one overshadows it all. And though we are not believers in heaven and hell or even god, I know that her spirit is hugging me right now, and she´s whispering, "Oh, Leslie, that was beautiful" in her West Virginia accent, which clung to her like the delicate aroma of sweetbay magnolias.