Friday feelings…

You know, in yesterdays post I mentioned some of the things I am thankful for.  One of the things I mentioned was my sister.  

Oh. a sister is a wonderful thing to have.  I grew up in the midst of 3 brothers and 4 sisters.  Three of my sisters are gone now, all to cancer.  Two of my brothers are gone now too, one to lung cancer and one to a botched surgery.  My youngest brother is quite ill, having suffered a stroke a couple of years ago.  He lives close to St. Louis and my remaining sister lives in West Virginia.

A younger sister is someone who has known you all of her life.  She has shared your sorrow and pain and happy times.  When we were young we double dated.  We spent many an hour sitting on the town square in Macomb with the motor running in my ‘53 pea green Plymouth that my daddy helped me buy.  That was such fun, just watching the world go buy.  We frequented the Dairy Queen that is still standing in the same spot in the same building close to the Western Illinois University.  We hung out with friends at the Student Prince, a café at the edge of town.  To the best of my knowledge that building is still there too.

The memories are flooding back this morning.  My red haired boy friend.  Fun, simple, innocent times.

But my life really began the day I met Jim, just home from Korea and spending some time with his brother and sister in law.  He was so handsome with his black curly hair and dark brown eyes.

And now I am back in the real world.  Jim is gone, a victim of cancer that took the lives of 3 sisters and 1 brother.  I am thankful for the life that I have now and grateful to family and friends.

I hope you all have a blessed weekend.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth

A sister…

How do people make it through life without a sister?    I was blessed to have four sisters.  Three of them (my older sisters) died of different forms of cancer.  I have one remaining sister.  She is a bit younger than me and a whole lot wiser.  She is always there for me whenever I need her although a distance of 500 miles separates us.  She will listen to me for however long it takes to calm me down even though her own mind is filled with many worries of her own.  She calls me three times a day just to make sure I am still breathing.  These calls to me happen even if she is away from home or staying with a member of her family in the hospital.

I woke up this morning thinking how nice it is to have a sister/confidante that you can tell all of your problems too without fear of them being repeated.  Just wanted to say “Thanks Rae, for helping me remember parts of my childhood I had forgotten (some of it I would rather be forgotten),  Thanks for helping me remember old friends (and boyfriends) from a time when we were both young and pretty.  Thanks for all of the advice and never criticism even though I deserve to be criticized now and then.  Just THANKS!!”

It is bright and sunny out this morning and the temperature is standing at 28 degrees.  The countdown to spring stands at 21 days.

I have errands to run this morning so I will catch you all when I get back.  Have a peaceful week.  Stay safe and be happy!!

Beth