She and my mom were the anchors of our family.
Before last Christmas she was put in a nursing home but she had been living up near San Francisco with her youngest daughter the past couple of years.
I did see her last year at the Mexican restaurant that makes chile relleno's as big as your hand for a family get together. I will sorely miss her.
I wrote her a letter before last Christmas telling her how much I enjoyed our Christmases together. Making Aunt Minnie's cookies the day after Thanksgiving so they could cure by Christmas. Camping trips to Yosemite for two weeks every summer. Sometimes Big Sur, Huntington Lake, Dripping Springs or the Desert.
My mom was the bookkeeper for her first husbands business (auto wrecking-mid 50's) when we were young and during summer vacation we got to play in all the cars while mom was working. Their dad owned the Texaco gas station half a block away. This was when they had above ground tanks on trestle type supports with catwalks on both sides and a ladder to climb up.
She lived in the avocado capital of the world beginning in the 70's (18 miles inland) and I used to go have avocado toast with her 60 years ago. My family was full of carpenters and tradesmen and they gathered and each donated their trade to build her and her second husband a huge ranch home on a hill overlooking avocado groves. She had horses and chickens as I recall. They called it "Miller's Outpost." 
I was on the road performing at that time so I didn't participate.
She was my go to friend when I was 10 and needed to talk to someone.
Now she's gone and I'm getting old.
She was a believer as am I.
We are here a short time.
I'm not thinking of smoking.
That was the past.
Life
