This year I had to face a Halloween without my nephew who died just before he turned 23 last July from a disease called Cerebellar Ataxia

My nephew was the first kid in my family that I taught about Halloween…I made  his first costumes, I carved his pumpkins and stole his chocolates after he fell asleep-

which was fine because he used to put my very expensive makeup on my Siberian Husky, Tristan, and then he would take all day showing his handiwork off to all of our friends and family.

The night I took Tristan out of the animal shelter was his last night on Earth- he would have been put down the next morning. They told me that after I adopted him.

I’m not sure why I mentioned that, it’s part of the story I suppose.

I also had to deal with the fact that my cat, Wolfgang, ( who was diagnosed with  kidney failure during the poisoned pet food scare) and died last October  wasn’t going to be with me on Halloween too- and even though the vet said in all probability it wasn’t the food but Wolfie’s age ( which was 16 ) that got him in the end

I try to believe that.

And then yesterday

On the Day of The Dead

My sister, who is a breast cancer survivor…

told us that

she

is now a Five Year Cancer Survivor.

It was

Día de los Muertos

yesterday

and

yesterday

 it was also all about living too.