Eulogy - After January
EULOGY
Oftentimes, family and friends gather at holidays and celebrations. And as our . Missing from our physical lives, but forever living in our hearts. Today we are here to celebrate a friend, a mother, grandmother, a sister, a daughter, an aunty, and a wife. We are here to celebrate the life of Gail.
My mum didn’t start out her life as glue, as someone who kept the people around from falling apart, but she learned over a lifetime how to be that person. I suppose some of this super-power of hers came from the family trait of stubbornness. As a daughter, this trait could be maddening at times and certainly not easy. But that stubbornness, that in some people leads to a hardening and a pulling away, led instead to a softening and an opening up that would amaze me.
I am her oldest child. I remember that young woman with a quick temper who could yell when she needed to. Now having my own children, I know that no one sees your worst sides like your children do. But I also watched her change, with the death of her own parents when she was in her 20’s, through the loss of a son, and through her battles with cancer. With each sorrow, mum grew in wisdom and strength, she reached out in ways that I am only still becoming aware of. She spoke with other mothers who lost sons and daughters, she knew the pain, she knew how awful that could be, and she knew how to comfort, hug, and cry with those who had lost one of their own. Through that loss she gained a different perspective on being a mother. She learned that love speaks louder than anger and that some things are not worth the fight. It’s a grandmother’s wisdom – and I hope and pray that I listened enough to take those lessons so hard learned to heart. When mum and dad found out last year that the cancer was terminal, that the cancer that we had hoped, prayed and believed was defeated had come back. She knew where she was going, and that she would see Wilder, my brother, again. That she would fight as hard as she
Oftentimes, family and friends gather at holidays and celebrations. And as our . Missing from our physical lives, but forever living in our hearts. Today we are here to celebrate a friend, a mother, grandmother, a sister, a daughter, an aunty, and a wife. We are here to celebrate the life of Gail.
My mum didn’t start out her life as glue, as someone who kept the people around from falling apart, but she learned over a lifetime how to be that person. I suppose some of this super-power of hers came from the family trait of stubbornness. As a daughter, this trait could be maddening at times and certainly not easy. But that stubbornness, that in some people leads to a hardening and a pulling away, led instead to a softening and an opening up that would amaze me.
I am her oldest child. I remember that young woman with a quick temper who could yell when she needed to. Now having my own children, I know that no one sees your worst sides like your children do. But I also watched her change, with the death of her own parents when she was in her 20’s, through the loss of a son, and through her battles with cancer. With each sorrow, mum grew in wisdom and strength, she reached out in ways that I am only still becoming aware of. She spoke with other mothers who lost sons and daughters, she knew the pain, she knew how awful that could be, and she knew how to comfort, hug, and cry with those who had lost one of their own. Through that loss she gained a different perspective on being a mother. She learned that love speaks louder than anger and that some things are not worth the fight. It’s a grandmother’s wisdom – and I hope and pray that I listened enough to take those lessons so hard learned to heart. When mum and dad found out last year that the cancer was terminal, that the cancer that we had hoped, prayed and believed was defeated had come back. She knew where she was going, and that she would see Wilder, my brother, again. That she would fight as hard as she