There was an average of 3 years difference in the ages of my Daddy’s brothers and sisters…..7 in all. There were two girls that were stillborn, but I never knew (or forgot) where they were in the birth order. Aunt Joyce was the baby.
Aunt Joyce endured more than I believe I ever could. How do you bury two children. Max died 14 years ago and Jan 2. She loved her husband, her children, her many neices and nephews and the friends she made everywhere she went.
When Jan died a couple of years ago, the cousins vowed that we were tired of seeing each other only at funerals. Every few months 4 out of the 7 that made the pledge meet at a restaurant, and more recently, a nursing home (my cousin broke her leg and had to have rehab). Sherry, Joyce’s only living child, is one of the four. Before Thanksgiving, Sherry made plans for all of us to meet at Aunt Joyce’s retirement home surprise her by having Thanksgiving dinner with her. The weather was cold, the wind was horrible, the Dallas traffic miserable….but we were there. Aunt Joyce was so surprised. We all had a wonderful time. She told us during dinner that she misses her brothers and sisters so much. I am so grateful that we visited her that night. That we shared a meal together. That is the memory I will take with me.
Tonight I hope she is having a family reunion with Uncle Luke and Aunt Bertha, Aunt ‘Sis’ and Uncle Cecil, Uncle Lewis and Aunt Rose, Uncle Dub and Aunt Dorothy, My beloved Daddy, Aunt Helen and Uncle Bill, her husband ‘Speedy’, and children Jan and Max.
May the souls of the dearly departed, rest in peace.
Posted by jcoftw 
Now that I\'m older 