My dad always quoted Dylan Thomas when our family suffered a loss. And the English professor that he was would often point out the subtext for Dylan's poignant prose about loss. Thomas was right. After the first loss, the first loss that one experiences, all encompassing, all obliterating there seems to be no other. We join a secret club, and we help each other, or at least we try to. Once we cross through that awful rite of passage, that ever necessary threshold that is part of life, we become experienced. Or perhaps even all knowing.
That's why my 97 year old aunt's passing took me by surprise. I tried to be an old veteran, and take it on the chin but somehow the loss of this humble and gracious lady was different. Since birth my mom's first cousin ( we have always called her, Aunt Catherine) has been there for my mother (when she fell sick), myself, my family, and my children in every sense of the word.
This lady has lifted me up in so many different ways that are impossible to measure. And believe me, I'm not the only one. Every single person my aunt came in contact with was touched by both her love and concern. I will forge ahead, and live my best life despite missing her horribly. I know she would want that without a doubt. But I'm going to be honest with you- the void hat she has left us with- is pretty much a chasm.
Morna, I'm so sorry for your loss. What an amazing legacy she has left--"every single person...was touched by both her love and concern." What a beautiful gift she has left for you and all the others who loved her. My condolences.
ReplyDeleteThank-you, Denise. Means a lot!
DeleteI’m so sorry for the loss of your aunt. She sounds like an amazing person! Grief is such an odd feeling - it never quite goes away. “Time heals all wounds” is incorrect, I believe. I think it changes the wounds, so they aren’t as sharp, at least until the next loss reopens it. Thank you for sharing about your loss.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry for your loss. Allow the grief be. Sometimes people think that the loss is less when a person has lived a long life but it's not true. It's the connection that creates the loss.
ReplyDeleteMay you feel the support of those around you as you deal with the loss of someone so beloved. Dylan may be right in some ways, but I also believe that grief can take us by surprise. Sending you light.
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