An Invisible Thread (31 page)

Maurice fit right in with my sister Annette’s kids; here they all are hanging out in my apartment on Thanksgiving Day, 1986.

We all watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade from the outdoor running track overlooking Broadway. The floats seemed close enough to touch!

Maurice opening my first Christmas present to him—a remote-control racecar—on Christmas Eve, 1986. My sister Nancy is giving him a hand.

The Carino kids, all grown up, at Annette’s house on Christmas Day, 1986: (from left) Frank, Nancy, me, Annette, and Steven.

Maurice and my nephew Derek in 1989. I bought him a new Ross chrome ten-speed bike. Boy, was he surprised.

My brother Frank in his navy uniform in 1975. He served for just under three years and got to see the world.

My future husband, Michael, and I at the Il San Pietro Hotel in Positano, Italy, in 1989. We’d been dating five months by then and got married eight months later.

My girls! These are my poodles Lucy (on the left) and Coco in my condo in East Moriches, NY. Love those faces!

My sisters and brothers joined me at a memorial service for my aunt Margaret in 2010: (from left) Nancy, Annette, me, and Steven.

Maurice and his family at the funeral for his mother, Darcella, in 2000: (from left, back row) Maurice (holding Jahleel), Ikeem, and Michelle; (front row) Jalique, Princess, and Maurice Jr.

Maurice and Michelle helped me celebrate my fiftieth birthday at the Westchester Country Club in October 2001.

Maurice gave an emotional toast at my birthday celebration in 2001. “You saved my life,” he told me. “The Lord sent me an angel. And my angel was Laurie.”

Maurice and his family today: (back row) Ikeem; (center row, from left) Jalique, me, Maurice Jr., Princess, Maurice, and Michelle; (front row) Jahleel, Jahmed, and Precious.