{"id":4176,"date":"2025-12-31T08:32:24","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T08:32:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/?p=4176"},"modified":"2025-12-31T08:32:26","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T08:32:26","slug":"my-late-mom-and-i-shared-a-christmas-hersheys-tradition-she-passed-away-this-year-but-it-led-me-to-a-truth-i-never-expected","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/?p=4176","title":{"rendered":"My Late Mom and I Shared a Christmas Hershey\u2019s Tradition\u2014She Passed Away This Year, but It Led Me to a Truth I Never Expected"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><em>Every December 20th, my mother and I shared one perfect ritual: a giant Hershey\u2019s bar, two cups of coffee, and the same park bench. She passed away in October. And when I went alone for the first time, a man was already sitting there, holding a Hershey\u2019s bar. He looked at me and said, \u201cYour mom kept a secret from you.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"attachment_5538\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/latellagelato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1s.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5538\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The machines beside Mom\u2019s bed hummed softly, steady and indifferent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I sat in the hard plastic chair, rubbing lotion into my mother\u2019s hands the way the nurse had shown me. Her skin felt thinner than it should have\u2014fragile, almost translucent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then Mom cleared her throat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think I made a mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I looked up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her face was pale against the pillow, her hair noticeably thinner than it had been just two weeks earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat kind of mistake?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her lips pressed together as she stared up at the ceiling, as though the answer might be written there among the water stains and fluorescent lights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My chest tightened. \u201cMom?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She turned her head toward me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her eyes were tired, but calm\u2014too calm\u2014like she had already made peace with something I didn\u2019t yet understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI need you to promise me something.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"attachment_5540\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/latellagelato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1ssss.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5540\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My stomach flipped. We were entering dangerous territory now. I could feel it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Promises made in a hospital room to a dying mother aren\u2019t the kind you get to break later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPromise what?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat when the time comes, you\u2019ll listen to your heart. Not your anger. Not anyone else\u2019s guilt. Not even what you think I would\u2019ve wanted. Do what you believe is right.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou\u2019re scaring me, Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She gave a faint smile. \u201cI\u2019m not trying to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What did she mean by&nbsp;<em>when the time comes<\/em>? What time? What decision was she preparing me for?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a moment, I thought she\u2019d fallen asleep. Her breathing had taken on that slow, shallow rhythm it always did when the pain medication kicked in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then she opened her eyes again\u2014and abruptly changed the subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019m going to be able to do our Christmas ritual this year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The words hit me harder than I expected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For my entire life, my mother and I had shared one perfect pre-Christmas tradition every December 20th.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019d buy the largest milk chocolate Hershey\u2019s bar we could find, grab two coffees, and walk to the exact same bench beneath an old oak tree in the park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019d split the chocolate, sip our coffee, and take our traditional selfie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"attachment_5536\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/latellagelato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1cc-2.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5536\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Every single year. Same place. Same candy. Same ridiculous grins as we pretended we weren\u2019t freezing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I had photos going back to when I was six years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Me with missing teeth and a terrible haircut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Me as a sulky teenager who thought the tradition was dumb\u2014but showed up anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Me as an adult who finally understood what my mother had always known: that consistency matters. That showing up matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat?\u201d I forced a laugh. \u201cOf course you are. You always do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She shook her head slowly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou\u2019ll go without me. Traditions matter. They carry us when we don\u2019t know what comes next.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I swallowed hard. \u201cWe\u2019ll go together next year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She didn\u2019t respond. She just looked at me with those too-calm eyes\u2014the look of someone who knows something you\u2019re not ready to accept yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then she said softly, \u201cPromise me you\u2019ll go. Even if it hurts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I nodded. \u201cI promise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She exhaled, like she\u2019d been holding something in for a very long time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I wanted to ask her what she meant\u2014but I didn\u2019t. Because asking meant admitting she was dying. And I wasn\u2019t ready for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two weeks later, she was gone. Cancer\u2014swift and brutal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I buried her in October.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By December, the world felt like it was coming apart without her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everything reminded me of Mom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">People kept telling me it would get easier, that grief softens with time. But how much time does it take?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I avoided the grocery store near the park where we always bought the chocolate. But as the date of our ritual crept closer, I knew I couldn\u2019t avoid it forever. I\u2019d made a promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"attachment_5539\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/latellagelato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1sss.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5539\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the 20th, there was no escaping it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The promise sat in my chest like a stone. Mom had asked so little of me in her final days\u2014how could I refuse her this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>I can\u2019t do this without her,<\/em>&nbsp;the thought circled my mind as I walked into the grocery store. What was the point? Who was I keeping the tradition for?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then muscle memory took over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I grabbed the chocolate automatically. Then two coffees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My body knew what December 20th meant, even if my heart hadn\u2019t caught up yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The walk to the park felt longer than usual. Colder. I kept expecting to hear her voice beside me, commenting on the weather or pointing out Christmas lights she liked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When I reached the bench, I stopped cold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Someone was already sitting there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A man, shivering in the cold. He wore a thin jacket that had clearly seen better days\u2014maybe better years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His eyes were bloodshot, dark circles sagging beneath them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But what caught my attention was the giant Hershey\u2019s bar resting in his lap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When he saw me, his face crumpled with relief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThank God,\u201d he whispered. \u201cI\u2019ve been waiting here since sunrise. I was afraid I\u2019d missed you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I stopped a few feet away, clutching the coffees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My mind struggled to process what I was seeing. That was&nbsp;<em>our<\/em>&nbsp;bench. Mine and Mom\u2019s. And that Hershey\u2019s bar\u2014it was&nbsp;<em>our<\/em>&nbsp;tradition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet this stranger sat there like he belonged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m sorry\u2026 have we met?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNo,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I knew your mother.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fact that he\u2019d been waiting for me made the words feel heavier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHow did you know my mom?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He swallowed hard. His hands were shaking\u2014not just from the cold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYour mom kept a secret from you. She made me promise to reveal it when the moment was right. And now it\u2019s time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mom\u2019s words echoed in my head\u2014how she\u2019d asked me to promise I\u2019d follow my heart when the time came.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Was this the moment she\u2019d meant?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"attachment_5535\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/latellagelato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1cc-1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5535\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The coffee cups burned in my hands, but I couldn\u2019t move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat secret?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYour mother and I had a child together,\u201d he said quietly. \u201cYou.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I stared at him. \u201cNo\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m your father.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMy dad died. That\u2019s what my mom told me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He nodded. \u201cShe lied to protect you. I left when you were only a few months old\u2014and I regretted it every day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThen why did you leave?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He looked down at the chocolate. \u201cI fell in love with someone else while your mom was pregnant. A colleague\u2026 she led me astray.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLed you astray?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cExactly. I never cheated. I walked away instead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I let out a bitter laugh. \u201cCongratulations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMy life never really worked after that,\u201d he said. \u201cNothing lasted. Jobs. Relationships. I was cursed. I tried to come back a few times.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEvery couple of years. When things started going badly again, I tried to make penance with your mom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not because he missed me\u2014but because his life wasn\u2019t working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAnd I\u2019m guessing she shut the door in your face.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEvery time\u2014except the last. Earlier this year. She told me about your tradition.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m sick,\u201d he said. \u201cMy liver is failing. I need a donor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everything clicked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSo you\u2019re here,\u201d I said, \u201cto ask me to save you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m here to ask you to consider it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And there it was\u2014the choice Mom had prepared me for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I saw my own features in his face now. My nose. My chin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But how could I do this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was one thing to forgive him. Another to give him part of my body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"attachment_5542\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/latellagelato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1ff9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5542\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I stepped away from the bench. From the Hershey\u2019s bar that now felt like a trap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How could Mom have shared this sacred ritual with him?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But was I the kind of person who could let someone die because I was angry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI need time to think.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019ll be here every day,\u201d he said. \u201cPlease don\u2019t turn your back on me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I walked away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I didn\u2019t know what I would decide\u2014but Mom believed I was strong enough to choose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I would try to do what was right.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Every December 20th, my mother and I shared one perfect ritual: a giant Hershey\u2019s bar, two cups of coffee, and the same park bench. She<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4177,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/607978842_1400941108355253_6322176634698077152_n.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4176"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4176\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4178,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4176\/revisions\/4178"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/humorsidehub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}