The last time I spoke to my Nanimaa, she told me to go, and to be happy.

My Nanimaa (maternal grandmother) had been ill for quite some time, and had spent the past few years in and out of the hospital. In late summer, they moved her to palliative care because the only thing that the doctors could do for her now was help her deal with her pain.

I spent some time with my Nanimaa when I was last in Toronto in September. While I was there, visiting her at Sunnybrook Hospital, she asked me her usual battery of questions in her broken mix of English and Kutchi:

Do you have a new girlfriend? (No.) Are you doing well at work? (Mostly.) Where’s your brother? (At school.) Are you eating well? (Too much.) When are you getting married? (Not anytime soon.) Do you call your mom regularly? (Every day.)

It was the usual questions, and we had our usual chat about work, the length of my brother’s hair, my non-existent love life, and the family.

Before I left the hospital to head to the airport, I told my Nanimaa that I would be back, soon, to see her again. She told me not to worry — instead of promising to come back soon, she made me promise two things:

• That I would take care of my mom.
• That I would go, live life, and be happy. Not stay, not look back, but forge ahead, do exciting things, and be happy.

I promised her that I would.

My Nanimaa passed away on Wednesday. She went peacefully, happily.

I flew back to Toronto on Wednesday night to pay my last respects, yes, but also to take care of my mom. She’s the most important person in my life, and plus, I made a promise to do just that.

On Monday, I fly back to DC — I go back to forge ahead, do exciting things, and work on being happy.

A few people have asked me about funeral arrangements. The funeral will be held at 8:50am, tomorrow, Saturday December 12, in Scarborough. Email me or leave me a comment if you’d like more details. Thank you all in advance for your support, sympathies, and love.