My reluctance to share this latest twist in my life’s journey has buckled under the pressure to reveal a bit about my family to all of you.
I lost my sister to illness not long ago. She was 14 months younger than me. She had suffered terribly for a long time with a list of ailments too long for me to count here. It was a bout with COPD that claimed my sis. Her heart stopped and the medics couldn’t bring her back.
Georgianne died in the house she shared with her husband.
Sis led a complicated life. However, we remained close despite some differences over many issues dating back to our teen years. It’s difficult to explain, except that I knew her my entire life. She was part of my life the moment I became aware of my surroundings as a toddler.
I have been feeling down in the dumps over the past several days. I guess it’s a feeling of mortality that has gripped me.
My parents weren’t allowed to grow old. Dad was 59 when he perished in a boating accident in 1980. Mom was 61 when she succumbed to Alzheimer’s disease four years later. My bride was 71 when she passed from glioblastoma — cancer of the brain. All but one of my parents’ eight siblings have passed away.
We’re going to gather later this week to celebrate Georgianne’s life in a service at a church she and her husband attended in a rural Washington state community. The next day we will gather at a cemetery in Portland to have her remains blessed by an Orthodox priest from the church where my sisters and I were baptized.
I have no particular need to tell you all of this, other than to put it in the open. I have one sister left and I venture to believe we will be drawn even closer than we are already … and that’s really saying something.
Maybe I should declare a bit of regret that I wasn’t always kind to my departed sister. She had this way of getting under my skin with the occasional statement or opinion that exhibited a stunning lack of awareness that others were hurting.
But … she was my sister. I loved her unconditionally. I will miss her for the rest of my life.
She is an incredible lady. Sadly, we did not get the chance to go bowling, although Johnny would have enjoyed it. To be honest, we will all be a little melancholy when we think of the ones we’ve loved. My heart goes out to you, I can’t imagine what sits on your mind? Be reassured that they are always with you, as long as you think of them and keep them in your heart, they will never be gone.