My aunt, Ellen was fifty three years old when she died in May of this year. Her death was not traumatic, but it was fairly unexpected. We knew she was unhealthy, but she did not tell anyone about the seriousness of her illness. She didn't tell anyone that she had a specific illness. She had just quit a lifelong smoking habit in 2001. We all thought she was getting better.
             When I was younger we weren't very close, but her daughter, Christina, was always my favourite cousin. I was a bridesmaid in her wedding in 2002. That's about when I started getting closer with Ellen. They lived in Los Angeles, and when I was in high school we didn't have time to get together very often. Since the wedding, though, we have actually seen each other quite often. I had found that Ellen shares my interest in cooking. I was really enjoying getting to know her.
             On May__, I went to the doctor to pick up a prescription. I saw a couple sitting outside the hospital. The woman was crying and the man was holding her. I could tell that she had just lost someone, and it made me sad. Then I got in my car and checked the messages on my cell phone. One was from my dad; he was crying and said that Ellen was sick, and that my mom had left work to go be with her.
             I knew it was serious; I tried to call him back, but I couldn't get a hold of him. I was planning to go see him anyways, so I went to his house, but he wasn't there. I was sort of freaking out, I didn't know what to do, and I wanted to know what was going on. After that I drove to my mom's house, that's when I started crying. I was just driving around, not knowing where to go. Eventually I got a hold of my dad, and my mom, and found out that Ellen was in critical condition. The next morning she died. I went down two days later to be with my mom, Christina, and her family.
             The only physical sensation I remember having i
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