Hillbilly Elegy

had died in 2008, Mamaw’s estate likely
would have been bankrupt.
In her will, Mamaw divided what
remained between her three kids, with a
twist: Mom’s share was divided evenly
between me and Lindsay. This
undoubtedly contributed to Mom’s
inevitable emotional outburst. I was so
caught up in the financial aspects of
Mamaw’s death and spending time with
relatives I hadn’t seen in months that I
didn’t realize Mom was slowly
descending to the same place she’d
traveled after Papaw’s death. But it’s
hard to miss a freight train barreling
down on you, so I noticed soon enough.
Like Papaw, Mamaw wanted a