It had been twelve years since the unbearable death of her daughter, just weeks after graduating from college. About 9 years later, the surviving daughter named her own daughter after her sister. That child, namesake of her deceased aunt, was now three-and-a-half years old.
On the 12th anniversary of her sister’s death, showing her young daughter a photo of her deceased aunt, she asked her daughter, “Do you know who this is?”
“Yes, it is me,” she replied. “It is me (she said her own name, which was also the name of her aunt) when I was all growed up. I was very pretty.”
Despite growing up in a distant state with infrequent visits, the child has been very attached to her grandmother, crying on occasion and saying she wants to go see her.
She has also over the years insisted that she and her mother are sisters. Prior to the viewing of the photo and those clear comments, her mother had assumed the child was just confused with relationships.