This is a charming and well-told story, @stormcharmer. You developed the characters very well. The daughter has every right to feel the complexity of emotions she is battling as she heads for the podium. That last minute transformation, fueled by a better understanding of the reality around her and the lives her mother touched, is what we look for in successful fiction. Nicely done!
Thank you so much @jayna. I have my eye set on another of your prompts this afternoon. I do hope I can do justice to it! I'm very much enjoying this community of yours. I think it was what I missed the first time when I joined last year. This has made a huge difference in the small place I hold here. Thank you once again.