My "year" of Kaddish is done

I finished my 11 Jewish months of saying Kaddish for my mother yesterday, so hopefully I'll be back to writing at least once a week on my blog. It's been a trying year. Last year at this time we knew my mother's time was short and she did pass away in February. A few weeks later my sister-in-law died and then a week later I officiated at the funeral of a special cousin/"uncle". At the same time, in a tumultuous process, Kehilat Shalom considered it's future and after months of fractious discussion about a possible merger voted to stay independent as long as possible.
So looking back on the year it's been year of sadness and loss and stress and incredible loving support. I've attended minyan at Kehilat Shalom almost every night and at Bnai Israel in Rockville almost every morning. People at Kehilat Shalom especially in the weeks after my mom's death were incredibly kind and supportive. And the 'gang' at Bnai Israel every morning feels like extended family... I'll continue to support them as they've helped me by continuing to go every Friday morning.
I also see that my family is doing good. My son is healthy and happy at college. My wife, Diane, is OK and trying to take a little better care of herself. My sisters and their families are all doing good. My father is doing amazingly well. He's walking with a walker and his memory is good almost every day... both are tremendous improvements for previous years.
It will be good to "get back" an hour and a half every morning (early rush hour to Rockville to minyan and back) ... to sleep a hour more and go back to the gym every morning. I'll still pray at home every morning and think about my mother and the other family who I remember at every service.
A good and healthy 2012 to all...