There's Enough Room for Both of us
Post Girl Meets World.
Dedicated with Loving Memory to my own Mother-in-law.
Topanga sighed as she knelt in front of the fresh grave. Amy Mathews. 1957 – 2030. Beloved wife, mother, and grandmother.
It had been a shock for all of them when Amy died last week. No one had known she'd had any heart problems until she'd had that heart attack. "She's the backbone of our family!" Cory had said over and over when he'd heard the news. "She's not supposed to die. Ever."
Topanga, who ordinarily would have gently reminded Cory that no one could live forever, had simply hugged her husband, wondering how she would live without Amy's guidance herself. It was as if she were fumbling around in the dark with her eyes closed.
And then there was Eric, who was supposed to be the powerful senator now, who'd started screaming for his Mommy the moment he'd entered his childhood home, as if they were all holding Amy hostage.
It had taken the strength and wisdom of Alan, Topanga, and Riley to drag Eric to the couch and eventually calm him down.
Alan appeared to be doing well enough as the dependable man he'd always been. Until the time Topanga had caught him staring at the Mathews' kitchen sink, where Amy had taken care of the family's dishes every day, unable to see anyone else or hear anything Topanga had said. Topanga had left him there, uncertain what else to do.
Morgan had spent most of the weekend searching the entire house for a particular art project she and her mother had worked on when she had been in elementary school. Topanga had done her best to help her, but it had seemed Morgan kept changing her mind about what it looked like. "It's sparkly wings, like a fairy princess costume…No, it was bright red…I know! It was a piece of poster board, with tissue paper glued on it…"
Morgan had still been looking for the art project when Topanga had left.
Topanga just needed a moment to herself. She'd spent the last few days consoling everyone, but did anyone pause to think about how she felt? Amy may have not been her mother, but she'd loved the woman as much, if not more, as Chole.
"You were a wonderful wife and mother. When I first got married and, and then had Riley, I hoped I'd be as good as you. As Cory said, you were the backbone of all of us. And…I don't know how to do it now that you're gone." By the time she'd finished talking, tears were rolling down her cheeks.
A shadow appeared behind her as Topanga kept sobbing, and she wondered who needed her help now. Couldn't she be left alone for a few more moments?
But when she turned around and saw Cory's curly darkish hair, Topanga couldn't ask him to leave. Instead, she smiled through her watery eyes and said, "There is enough room for both of us," and patted the spot next to her in front of the gravestone.
Cory sat down immediately. "I just don't know what to do without her." Once again, Topanga felt like fumbling around with her eyes closed in the dark, but she still reached for his hand.