Melamed Trip

On July 27, 2007 I fulfilled a dream for my mother- one she never had the opportunity to do herself- I landed in Sweden bound for the arms of my mother’s bestfriend, Pia.
The story begins some 26 years ago on the small island of Tortola in the West Indies…

Sarah with a blackhaired baby girl met Pia with a blondehaired baby boy and a remarkable story of friendship began.

Pia found her way to Tortola when her husband, Ted, began working as a charter-captain. At the same time my mother followed my father’s career to the island as he was building the yacht club at Nanny Key. The two moms, with babies in tow, met one day at a pool and they say it was love at first sight.

We lived there for one year. In that time Pia and Ted’s son, Sebastian, and I became the most well-known couple on the island, apparently one could not be without the other and as our little love affair began to grow, so too did that of our mothers.

When the time came for us to pack our bags and move on to the next project everyone was heartbroken, but a deep bond had been made, one that seemed to withstand the test of time.

After our adventures in Tortola, life took over and the years seemed to pass at the speed of light. My mother started her own company in Raleigh, and soon my father followed suit, thus keeping us grounded in North Carolina. Ted and Pia moved back to Sweden and welcomed another baby boy, Robin. Everyone was so busy with their own lives that letters were sent in lieu of visits, photos were sent to show growth and each week Pia and my mother would talk for hours on the phone- always promising that next year they would travel somewhere together.

Years passed and our families never once visited each other. Finally in 1998 my mother suggested that Pia and Ted send Sebastian to the States for a year. With enthusiasm and joy Sebastian stepped foot in Raleigh, North Carolina to do what his mother had yet to accomplish- he came to visit.

The year he spent with my parents was wonderful. I was living in Baltimore, Maryland but still Sebastian and I seemed to pick up right where we left off, and we visited with each other often. He was my first friend, my first best friend and the two of us were very much like ambassadors for our mothers. We were able to hug each other, see each other, laugh together and spend time together. Our mothers lived vicariously through us, and for us it was a pleasure being able to give that gift to our moms.

After Sebastian headed off to University he and I still were able to spend time together on holidays and summer breaks- but our moms still had not traveled to see each other. Graduations came and went, I got married (with Sebastian in attendance!) and soon my mother became too ill to leave Raleigh.

For all the miles and years between them, my mother and Pia never missed a phone call- every week, for 1352 weeks they spoke. My mother’s final call to Pia was 11 days before she passed away. She had called to tell Pia that everything was alright, and though she was feeling down, she would soon be better and they would visit each other.

After my mom passed away my father found that she had just recently renewed her passport, something that was quite odd since she was fearful of being away from her doctors. But there it was, her last act of love for Pia, a renewed passport so that she could make the journey and see her beloved friend before it was too late.

On July 27, 2007 I cried as my father, Jay and I touched down in Sweden.
I had done it again, I had become my mother’s ambassador, but this time it was so very different.

Even though Sebastian and I had rekindled our friendship I was so very nervous to see Pia- thoughts were swirling in my head, and no matter how I tried to quiet them, they persisted…..

We met in the stairwell to Sebastian’s apartment. She rang up and we pressed the buzzer.
My father ran down first, I could hear them in the hallway, hugging and laughing. I stood at the top of the stairs, waiting for my feet and my legs to move me down them, one at a time. Eventually I began walking. Then I saw her- on the landing- staring at me.
I thought I would not remember her, I was just a little baby when we left, but standing there in front of her I recognized her. She seemed so familiar

“Oh, Eva… oh baby Eva, look at those eyes…. Let me see your eyes- they’re just the same as when you were a baby…”

She hugged me so hard and I knew I had done the right thing. It felt so right.

In that hug I gave her all of my mother and she gave me all of herself. She had been waiting for 26 years to hug Sarah, and in that stairwell she did.