the best things in life...

The best things in life come in small packages.
~ Margie Ingle

She was the second-born, but the first to live.
She was the shortest child of 8 siblings. I bet the closest she ever came to being 5' was when she wore exceptionally high heels.
She was valedictorian of her senior class, but demoted to salutatorian because she was "starting to show". Unwed mothers were not welcomed in society in those days. The principal didn't even want her to graduate. Years later he would apologize.
She was positive, no matter what life threw her way.
She loved to sew, and was an excellent quilter. She actually preferred piecing, and would send her quilt-tops away to be quilted.
She was feisty.
Two weeks ago, as hospice came to help, her eldest described her as "a wrinkle in the sheet". Her tiny frame seemed to be shrinking with each failure of the heart, with each round of infection and pain from her broken hip.
At 3am this morning, with her daughter-in-law by her side, she entered the presence of her Lord and Savior, 2 months shy of being 83.
I imagine she's enthralled with all the colors of heaven this morning.
And I can't help but wonder if her new body is as tiny as her old one.

Comments

Lydia said…

I have no idea who you are talking about...but this is a sweet eulogy. Hope your heart isn't hurting too much and that you are easily able to imagine her glorious meeting with her Savior!

September 21, 2011 at 11:26 AM

things we do for love

Saturday we had a baby shower for Bobby's niece. As I was making the mints, Bobby asked what else was on the menu. After I recited off the litany of items, he responded with "No peanut butter?! This shower is for Hannah! What's she going to eat?" (Hannah has had stomach problems over the years and has been unable to tolerate many foods, but peanut butter has been her staple.) Despite my assurances that she would enjoy the foods we were having, he was adamant that I needed to make peanut butter & jelly sandwiches for the shower. Even though I protested that NOBODY took that to a shower, he persisted, and informed me I could make them dainty with my little cutter. And so I did. To my surprise all but 3 were eaten. Who'd a thunk it?

perspectives

A few years ago after a Bible study a lot of the group continued to sit and talk and simply relax. One of the ladies felt like she was being mistreated by her boss. She was always given extra tasks or asked to assume responsibilities that no one else was asked to do. She felt it was unfair. As she was listing off some of the extras (she worked in a cafe for a plant), I was in flashback mode. My last year of college I was a shift manager at a fast food place. One of my many duties was to ensure that certain cleaning jobs (extra duties) was assigned and done properly. We were inspected by company headquarters once a quarter, and 3 of their 4 visits was ALWAYS a surprise visit. When I handed out those extra assignments, I had three things in mind: Who will do this job without making a bigger mess? Who can quickly do this job so we don't impede serving customers? Who will do this without the most drama? In essence, I wanted the best person for the job. Use the teenager who griped and c...

fun...funny houses

We saw the above house in Pittsboro while on our way to the mountains. It was the strangest house I've ever seen. Evidently this isn't a modification, for Bobby remembers thinking it funny as a child. Evidently a governor lived here at one point. I think the sign said it's now a Masonic lodge. And if seeing one funny house wasn't enough, the latest issue of This Old House had a link to their website that had several galleries of funny (or strange houses). Here's my favorites from their collection: Szymbark , Poland This just makes me laugh, and I would love to visit this house in person. Created by a designer who wanted to demonstrate "wrong-doings against humanity". Visitors have stood in line for as long as 6 hours to tour the house, and many come out feeling "sea-sick". Kalambaka, Greece... This 1,000 foot cliff drop has housed monastaries since the 11th century. Six of them are open to the public, " assuming, of course, th...

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