Arthur Zack
Dear Minnie, my one and only true love,
You may not have changed the world but you did change my world. You filled it with love. You were my best friend and the most caring, loving, considerate, helpful, compassionate, fun-loving, playful, beautiful, attractive, generous, and well-dressed person, and to top it all off, you were smart. Your imagination took us to great heights. You were responsible for all the good things that happened in our lives. Google the words happy marriage and our names will come up at the top of the list. I felt so lucky to have married you.
The following is an excerpt from a letter I wrote to you in 1997 after my first cancer surgery. “The man upstairs did his job and you exceeded all expectations down here. You were on call 24 hours a day since last September and you never once complained. You helped me get through the most traumatic experience in my life. My doctors deserve some of the credit but without my positive attitude and your unwavering support it would have been a lot worse. I pray we never have to go through such an experience again but if put to the test I hope I can live up to the great example you set for me. I was put to the test 25 years later and I kept my word to be with you at your side through this terrible ordeal. With the help of Judy and Hal, who were terrific by the way, we did everything we could to make your final days safe and as comfortable as possible. We put up a good fight but Alzheimer’s disease always wins.
We traveled from Antarctica to Iceland and almost every place in between and one day while sitting in a little coffee shop on the side of a mountain in Switzerland, you looked at me and said “you know Art, someday one of us will be all alone”. Well that day has finally come. You may have lost all of the wonderful memories we made together in our 62 years of marriage but I can never forget the love we shared and how you enriched my life and the lives of those people around you. You were a wonderful mother to Judy, and David and Steven were so lucky to grow up with such a fantastic Grandmother. Judy, and with the help of Hal, returned your love in your time of need. The fight is over now so rest in peace and thank you for a wonderful life.
With all my love,