In early January, 2024, I attended the visitation and said goodbye to my sweet friend Jan. Her passing was a melancholy way to bring in the new year. I was grateful that I knew her for the few short years that I did. She was seventy-nine, just shy of her eightieth birthday, and though she had various health issues, she was always so kind and thoughtful when I talked to her. She was adorable too! Shorter than me (which is pretty short), always ready for a smile and a hug. We shared a love for animals and I always appreciated how she remembered and asked about my own health issues, despite hers. The last few months of her life were rough at best, and I can only hope and pray that she is resting in sweet peace.
I was sad to hear that my neighbor Mel, a nice old man who I’d just had a Christmas visit with, passed away in February. He was a kind veteran, opinionated, and so much fun to talk to! After our Christmas visit, my husband and I decided to reach out and make plans to have dinner with him and his wife. We never got the chance, but I will always remember Mel. Some people come into our lives for such a short time that you believe you’ll never think about them, but that’s definitely not true. When a good soul touches you, you remember them for the rest of your life. Thanks, Mel.
My cousin Monte could have written an amazing memoir. How do I sum up his life here in this post? He was born in a tiny town in western PA. He graduated from Devry Institute of Technology. He was a veteran, an adventurer, a pilot for FedEx, a devoted husband, father and grandfather. He was also a loyal friend and a lifelong member of his hometown’s church. I always loved visits from Monte and his wife Kathy. When he retired from FedEx, they bought a high-end RV and traveled around the country in style. When they made it to Maryland, my family enjoyed their visit because Monte was so interesting and entertaining to talk to and be around. He had a wonderful sense of humor and loved telling jokes. He was a self-professed frugal dude! Everyone knew he had a more than adequate retirement, but he still shopped in thrift stores. I remember him boasting about a pair of cargo pants he bought for fifty cents and I loved the T-shirt he wore from a local flooring company. He was super-smart and we shared a love for antiques. Years later, after he and Kathy started having health issues, they built a house in Monte’s hometown, one he designed to look like an airplane. When I visited, he and Kathy gave me some amazing antiques they had collected over the years. Sadly, Monte’s health became too much for Kathy to deal with on her own, so they moved to Idaho to be closer to their kids. I remember the last visit I had with Monte. It was the Labor Day annual festival in Nicktown. My husband took a photo of me and Monte sitting together on a bench enjoying the live music. We’re both smiling and I remember thinking that I’d never see him again. He survived a few more years, but they weren’t great years for him. Attending his memorial last February was difficult, but also a wonderful celebration of a life truly well-lived.
In July, my Aunt Mick found the light. She was in her eighties and hadn’t been well for a long time. She lived in Ohio and I hadn’t seen her for quite a few years. She was the wife of my sweet Uncle Lou who passed on in 2015. I was unable to attend her funeral due to my health issues, but I made sure I reached out to my cousins to extend my love, prayers and condolences. The four of them had a different relationship with their mom, and they still grieve for their dad, but we all have to confront the various feelings and stages of grief that hit us when someone close to us dies. I remember Aunt Mick and I always will. May she rest in peace.
Sadly, another neighbor died just a couple of weeks before Christmas. Sue was the first and only neighbor who welcomed us with a gift. She handed us a bag of snails, which are delicious flaky, yummy cinnamon treats that I still love and get whenever I can today. She loved to visit and Brian and I spent a lot of time visiting her and her husband Ed on their porch. They visited our porch sometimes too. She adored animals and had two cats of her own. She also loved flowers and she and Ed always planted the best flowerbeds in the neighborhood. Sue would walk around barefoot, smiling and saying hello to everyone who walked by. Always friendly, always sweet. When I discovered she had dementia, I was heartbroken for her and Ed and also Sue’s family. Her death was fast and unexpected, so much so that when Ed came over to tell us, I was shocked into silence. I cried for Ed and for their family. I sit here and feel an emptiness because this spring, I won’t see Sue on the porch or with her flowers. I won’t see her smile and wave, and I’ll miss her. I hope she enjoyed my visits as much as I did hers.
I pray these five lovely souls and all the souls who left this world last year have found their peace and are living in the light.
The Second Chance Writer 