Dot`sThoughts

Then there was the sad news . Earlier yesterday I went out after my newspaper. The first thing I usually look at is where they list all the obits at the bottom of the front page of the local news. I got such a shock to see my friend`s name listed there. She lives in California. I first met her older sister when I started high school back in the late 40`s. This girl was in my brother class a couple years ahead of me, but we clicked together the moment we met. We remained close friends over the almost 50 years till she passed away. Thenher mom moved to california tobe near her only other daughter. This other daughter became also my friend from the first time I visited their home with her older sister. The older sis was a couple years older than me and this younger sister was 1 yr 8 mo. younger than me. So I fit in well with them both. Their Mom was like a second Mom to me. We had many wonderful times together over the years. There was one time when I called California and was talking to their Mom. She asked me when I was coming down to see her again. Her daughter had taken her to Calif. on a plane, and she never realized how far away from me she was then living. She kept begging me to come down. She said there`s not many of us oldies left and we have to stick together. One time her daughter told me that her Mom said that if nobody was going to take her up to see me then she would just drive herself up. A couple dayslater they found her sitting in their car. When Eve asked her where she was going, she said" I`m going up to see Dot. Glad they saw her before she started the cay as it is a long ways from California to upstate N.Y.. She had turned in her licence a few years before as she felt 80`s was getting to old to keep driving. She was a greatdriver still, but felt it was her responsibility to turn her Licence in. She did thisshortly after her older daughter died. They had lived about a 20 minutes drive from my home. The oldest had been real sick spending the last few years in a wheel chair and at the last few weeks she lost her eyesight and didn`t know anyone. her Mother continued totake full care of her, only asking that someone come to help get her into and out of her wheel chair. in her 80`s and still keeping her own home and careing for her then invaliddaughter. Such a sad thing to happen to one who had such caring feeling for everyone she ever met. She was a Girl Scout leader for years and helped run the Fort Edward Society and when she ended up in a wheel chair she did all their calls over the phone to keep helping.She had just gone on the boat cruise with her Senior classes 50th get together. She had a Nurseaccompany her so she could attend. Well, to get back to the younger sister, I called her Husband and we had a long phone conversation.I know he would have liked to keep talking much longer, but I felt my phone bill would already be getting way to high. It had been quite a few years since we had seen each other in person,but we still kept in touch thru letters or phone calls. So, him and I had lots to talk about.One thing i did tell him that seemed to help was what she once told me. She said that since he was a few years younger than her Husband, she needed to live longer so he would never be left alone. They were married 31 years when she passed away. They had one of the closest loveing relationships I have ever seen in any Marriage. More proof that age has little to do with makinga Marriage work. They stayed romantic with each other, often walking across the roam just to give the other one a hug. He also took the roll of being a great step-father to her 3 kids and grand kids and great grandkids, even though those 3 kids were from her first marriage. They were one close Family. I copuld understand how her kids could take to him so much as he is a warm, friendly very kind person. Eve will be greatly missed, but as her Hubby said, she will always be with us thru our many memories. Eve was not the average person. She didn`t care if others approved of how she dressed or acted, she stayed true to herself, while her sister was the serious down to earth type. So different from each other, but both so easy to get along with. Once you were a friend of their Mom or either of them, you remained their friend for life. I will always miss them all. They were like my extended family which I loved dearly.