Kennedy #2

My mother loved JFK. She not only kept up with the daily news, she also kept up with the state of their marriage. I recall the day my mother told me that Jackie and JFK had had a fight. I asked how she knew and she smiled and said, because during an outing together neither JFK nor Jacqueline looked at each other. Not once. My mother knew because she and my father fought. A lot.

The day he was shot my mother was heartbroken. I remember my parents having a long conversation about whether we should all go to Washington DC for the funeral. They eventually decided not to go because of the crowds, but our family mourned together in my father’s den watching the news. No smiles that day.

Three horrific events. The assignation of JFK, the Northridge earthquake and 9/11. All three have left a scar on my heart.