The Christmas Folgers commercial does me in. Annually. You know which one I mean. It's the one where Peter slips in the house at sunrise with his Army green duffle bag and his little sister says, "Peter! Everyone's sleeping."

And Peter wakes up his mother by making coffee. If this commercial does not make you cry, you must have no heart. Or no military background.

Now. Today, my mom received a Christmas card from Gloria. Her daughter Genny was in the room next door to mine in University Hospital, San Antonio, in the fall of 1999. Genny is close to my age. She was completely broken from an accident, and had to wait for all of her bones to heal before she could undergo physical therapy.

All I knew of this girl was what mom told me, because the waiting room families would visit. During those hours in my room that were not Visiting Hours hours, I would get lonely. Not being able to do anything, talk much, read or move, I would almost go stir-crazy. I asked Laura, a nurse, late one night, "Does Genny cry when her mother leaves?"

And that is a hard memory for my mom. Much like the thought of those nights of immobility is for me.