As a young child, Helga admired an older girl named Susie, and had told herself that if she were ever lucky enough to have a daughter, she would name her Susie. Helga's dream comes true.
When, at age fifty-four, Susie is diagnosed with cancer, Harris resorts to journaling, not only to help her understand the horrific circumstances but to chronicle these events in her life as well as Susie's. Helga explores all aspects of their relationship ... the closeness of mother, and daughter, as well as the divisiveness, and disappointments.
Within the small but closely-knit Harris family, a matter of utmost concern is Ali, Susie’s fourteen-year-old daughter, adopted when abandoned as a baby in China. The matriarch, now in her eighties, finds herself coping with a granddaughter in the throes of teenaged angst, heightened by the possibility of once again being abandoned by her mother.
Harris writes with heart-wrenching honesty, revealing emotions that run the gamut from anguish, confusion, disbelief, frustration, to humor, and hope for a miracle that she doesn't really believe in. She rues the sins of commission, and omission on both her part and Susie’s. But always, there is unconditional love for her family, and their celebrations, and traditions. Helga pleads:
Susie ... WAIT!
