Sunday, April 6, 2008

What a party...

There was a wonderful party yesterday afternoon. The guest of honor's parents, her sister and her sister's husband, her brother and her brother's wife, and dozens of aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends were there. The guest of honor was able to dance, for the first time in a long, long time, without any pain.

She'd had multiple myeloma for several years, and it had taken away her strength, but never her smile. When her kidneys failed yesterday, the decision was made to stop fighting. And she let go, quickly, and joined the party.

I know she's looking down on all of us here, who are left behind, and wondering why we're so sad. "I don't hurt anymore!" I can hear her say. "I'm with loved ones I haven't seen in years. I'm sad for you, not for me."

I'm sad for us, too. I'm sad that we won't have her humor and laughter anymore. For her, life was the party. Now she's gone on to the next party, and we're all invited, and we'll all be together again.

Farewell, Crazy Aunt Carolyn. Thank you for all the laughter and light you gave the world. We love you so.

1 comment:

Rob Monroe said...

Beautiful. Thank you for putting such a life into perspective. Disease can take away a lot of things, but as long as you have a positive attitude you're good. (Okay, that's my perspective, but trust me it helps on a daily basis.)