It's the age my mom wasn't.

[jenk]

I first became aware of my mom's age when I was 7 or 8. She was 39. Again. Every birthday. One year we got 3 candles for her cake: a "3", a "9", and a "?". We joked that each year we'd get another "?" candle. I knew she had to be, really, over 39. I just didn't know how much.

So I don't remember her being 40. I feel like I'm in new territory. Silly really, since I know plenty of people in their 40s. Still. Last year I turned 39, which was Mom's age for over 15 years. Now she's gone, and I'm an age she wasn't. Funny.