Healing waters: the swimming pool brings a family together and helps ease the pain death leaves behind.(perspectives)

It was almost a decade ago that I lost my mother. And just months ago, I lost her all over again.

Let me explain.

My mother, Dorothea Katz, passed away in January of 1997. She was both my inspiration and role model. Recently, I lost my aunt, to whom I was more of a surrogate daughter than a niece, especially after my mother's passing.

This past Mother's Day was the first without either of them. But rather than spending time at a cemetery or looking at old pictures, I remembered them, and healed, the same way I always do: by going to the water.

That's where I went during the months preceding my aunt's passing, a replay of the vigil that my family and I kept for my mother. The aching pain of inevitable loss was softened once more by retreating to the swimming pool of our local "Y," just two blocks from the same hospital.

Again, the friendly waters were consoling and gave me peace and solitude to release my tears. My many seasons of training allowed me to swim on automatic while my mind was free to play back the memories of their lives.

And who could forget my Aunt Charlet? At 4 feet, 8 inches, she was small in stature but larger than life. She was a beautiful actress, appearing in Broadway hits such as "Fiddler on the Roof," and movies such as "Flirting with Disaster." Her good looks and quick wit captivated audiences, acquaintances and loved ones.