Our neighbor Alex knocked on the back door a few days ago to let us know that Mary had been in the hospital since Sunday and would probably not make it through the evening. We had not seen much of her in the last many months because of the cold, and her increasingly reclusive ways, but had no idea she was at this stage. We stopped in to visit her and wish her well, and hope that she finds peace soon. I want to remember her as the kind neighbor who would pick us berries or apples and send them over, or chat with me as I was raking the lawn, telling me stories of falling off the sled when she was a kid, or the history that she and Alex had in town.