I was moved to tears this week. Not due to a negative life event, thank God, but rather from reading one of the most remarkable books I have recently had the good fortune to have placed in my hands.

I generally do not use my comments page to present a book review, but with the fall season upon us, watching the multicoloured leaves fall from their trees, and the shortening days, I am sensitive to how this past year has been one of great loss for so many people. I was moved by what I read, and I wanted to share my feelings with my Megillah family.

Dear Bubby, With Love, by Rosalie Avigdor, is barely forty-four pages in length, and yet has the power to touch the heart and soul of anyone who reads it. This is primarily because it is written totally from the author's heart and soul.

Dear Bubby, With Love, is a collection of correspondence between a granddaughter and her beloved bubby. What makes this book so gloriously outstanding is that all of the back and forth letters trace the progression of Bubby's Alzheimer's Disease. The book is divided into three sections; The Beginning, The Middle and the New Beginning.

The Beginning contains letters written by the granddaughter to her bubby as she arrives at summer camp. She tells of her excitement of spending the entire summer with old friends and new. She shares a secret with her grandma about a boy in the group to whom she is somewhat attracted, but indicates no real hope of ever winning his attention in a romantic way.

Bubby shares her excitement about being in camp and recounts how, when she was a young girl, such opportunities did not exist. She also tells her granddaughter about her beloved garden, and how she is looking forward to hearing from her often.

The granddaughter continues her frequent letters sharing her secrets; confidences to be shared with no one else. She tells of how she and this nice young man, mentioned in the earlier letters, have become close friends. She confides that this relationship has the potential to blossom, and how happy she is. But she also always tells her bubby how much she misses her, and treasures her letters. As the summer progresses we reach The Middle.

In this section Bubby continues to kvel hearing of her granddaughters camping experiences. She offers sage advice about friendship, romance, family and growing up. We begin to notice subtle changes in her tone. She expresses a lack of interest in some of her ordinarily rewarding routines, such as gardening and meeting with friends. Gradually, she tells of how she thinks she remembers having lunch with her own daughter (our heroine's mother) but is none too sure the event actually occurred. As the weeks progress she complains about certain possessions, a shoe, a key, which have gone missing. She confesses to not remembering what day it is, or whether or not she turned off the stove. She wonders if someone could be coming into her house and causing these things to happen.

The granddaughter does her best to remind her bubby of the good times they shared together. How she can still smell the aroma of the chocolate chip cookies Bubby used to bake for her. One senses that the granddaughter is tweaking to the idea that something is not right with her bubby, and she is anxious to get home to see her again.

The New Beginning starts with a letter from her mother explaining that Bubby has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease, and has been taken to a facility where she can be cared for properly. She returns from camp. Her parents meet her at the bus station, and she requests to be taken to her grandmother immediately.

Initially she is taken aback by the condition of her beloved bubby, but she cuddles into her arms, and shares the warmth and closeness she has always felt for this important lady in her life. The granddaughter rapidly realizes, with a maturity beyond her years, that this is still her bubby. The bubby who she loved, and who had always loved her unconditionally. She devotes herself to finding new ways of spending time with her bubby, and appreciating her for the bubby she is now, and not who she was in earlier days. The value her bubby has in her life does not change; nor should it.

My description of this book does nothing to evoke the emotions Rosalie Avigdor, Bubby's daughter, is able to awaken with her superb collection of these personal letters. Reading this book helps us realize regardless of what conditions present themselves in our lives, and what season we may find ourselves in, we are still valuable to those we love, and those who love us.

As we pass through this fall season, and watch the coloured leaves fall from the tree, leaving it bald and facing a harsh winter, we should remember that the tree still stands.

I urge you to spend a little time reading this brief but meaningful book. Within its forty-four pages are the wisdom and experiences of a lifetime.

You may order this book by contacting the author at her Email, or calling 1.514.488-8149.

Much love to all of you, and Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian Megillah family.

Michael