That Moment I Met My Mother In the Mirror at 2AM on day 36 (I think) of Covid Quarantine

That face. My face - caught at the moment of a ‘point of the spear’ decision. Day 36 (I think) of a 24/7 home covid quarantine that would eventually drag on for several more weeks. I am alone and isolated (my husband was visiting our daughter’s ouse on the other side of the planet when the travel ban locked us all down 'sheltering in place'). It was 2am in the morning of three, or was it four consecutive nights of insomnia. I gave up on getting any sleep and got up. Turing on the light, I met a stranger in the mirror. Do I crawl back in bed and cry? Do I break down and shut off? Do I succumb to empty laughter? Then, a subtle familiar expression flit across the face of that stranger and I saw 'That Face' - my mother and her compassionate yet "no-nonsense-allowed-here “Mom look” in my own face. I realised the only real option was to stand up straight, throw my shoulders back and “keep on keepin’ on!" She had taught me that regardless of what is happening around me, good or bad, I am responsible for how I choose walk the path before me. She would expect me to walk it well, and to make the path better for others. And then, in my own face I began to see the wrinkles of resilience and determination and laughter and joy that define my memories of her face, my mother - my friend. As of today (9/9/2020) covid inspired restrictions continue to hem in about me. Nevertheless, I choose to define my own path - I choose to “keep on keepin’ on” with accountability and compassion for myself and others. Thanks Mom; even though I am a grandmother I will never outgrow the comfort of knowing you are "there" for me. The painting was 90% completed during nights of covid induced insomnia, during the same lighting and physical conditions of the moment that inspired it.