2015 Creative Cups

Lorraine Conlin

Under The Sea

I am a breast cancer survivor, and never had children of my own. I often struggled with the question: what is my purpose in life?

My stepson’s mom died from the disease when he was fourteen. We talked about her often and I told him that his mother’s purpose was to give birth to him and mine was to take care of him.

I took him to the beach early one morning to witness his first sunrise. As we walked east along the shore into the new day, we began collecting things that had washed ashore. We found pieces of driftwood, shells and a tattered fishing net tangled with black skate egg cases, he called, “yakos.” He freed them from the net and tossed them into the sea, saying he was rescuing them. Later that day we learned that they are called mermaid purses.

A year later my sister-in-law passed away. I needed to help my brother care for his three children. His youngest daughter wanted a sweet-sixteen party and I wanted to pay for it. In addition to my day job, I took a part time job at night for three months so I could make her dream come true.

She wanted Under the Sea as the theme; as a child, she loved Ariel, the Little Mermaid.

Under my 36C are scars, stories and a beating heart.