April 15, 2019:
It was a conflict between her son and The Authorities, where, although her loyalty belonged with her son, she was so terrified of The Authorities that she sat paralyzed, silent, except for pitiable whimpers, and eloquently impotent tears.
There were many nails in that coffin. A series of disappointments spread over decades, where disillusion and disinterest led to distance, until in a final paroxysm he surrendered to defeat, as she had so long before.
He's glad that before her death he was able to tell her he loved her, and hear her say that she loved him, too.