Tuesday, August 27, 2019

A TRIBUTE



How can I start this? I suppose, by saying goodbye to our loving Aunt, our mother's only sibling. It's hard saying goodbye to those we love. No more picking up the phone to check in or going to visit.

We, humans, are a funny bunch, we take things for granted. We never think about tomorrow but the right here and now; until tomorrow comes and when it does all we wish is for one more day. We take the simple things in life and make them complicated but why?

I sit here at the Funeral Home looking in on her, lying in her casket. Doesn't she look nice, today? I think of all the times with Aunt Jane, the laughter, the tears and yes, some anger but always with a great deal of love. She had that laughter that when you heard it you knew, Aunt Jane was having a good time. Soo, many memories of a lifetime to sift through. One particular memory of a holiday at our grandmother's house, mother's and Aunt Jane's mother, I believe it was a Thanksgiving Day. Mother and Aunt Jane would start picking on each other and then you would hear granny(she would kill me if she heard me say granny) would intervene with, "now girls". It would go on and on about who was the favorite or who had to do more chores or which one got away with more shenanigans.

The one thing that you didn't do is ask them about their names; it would be on, their voices at a high octave that sounded almost like a laughing squeal at who had the worst name. So funny listening to both of them going at their mother on how they got the names they did.Eddie Sue or Roger Jane? Aunt Jane would politely tap mother on the arm while granny was in the kitchen seeing to the cooking and would say in a laughing loud voice, " I think momma just wanted a boy and got stuck with two measly girls and decided to give us dang boy names." Mother would chime in and then the school girl giggling would start. Granny would hold up her spoon from stirring the potatoes and would tell them how mother came by her name, "that damn nurse", she would say, now, "Roger Jane, I swear I have no clue", " I was out of it and all I remember was a song on the radio and I remember saying Roger and the next thing I know you are Roger Jane".  She tried saving herself but with mom and Aunt Jane laughing and goading she had no chance that day.  It would end with granny stating she needed some help in the kitchen mother would say "go help Roger", then Aunt Jane would chime in with "what about you Eddie?"

Those were great times seeing them having fun and laughing. I wonder if they did that growing up? Interesting that I do not know that answer. All we have are the memories of each of our families getting together with their mother and celebrating family.

As I sit and say goodbye to Roger Jane Ellis Brooks Floyd with tears filling my eyes, I also found a smile to now know that she is embracing her sister and her mother right at this moment. Mother loved her little sister as her little sister loved her. I can see mother running up to the little sister she had to leave so long ago and with the biggest hug and smiles. They had very pretty smiles. Now, all three are together again along with the grandmother that looked after them when granny had to work to provide for her girls. As much as the tears flow here on Earth, Heaven is whole with those four amazing women.

I lift my head to the skies and I can almost see the four of them looking down at us right now. NO MORE TEARS IN HEAVEN.


1 comment:

  1. 4 strong Women! Dont know how Daddy and Uncle Earl are doing with that bunch together again! Lol

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