My Aunt Mary passed away this past Wednesday evening. Actually she’s my Great Aunt, but never really considered it as actually being an “extended” Aunt, she was my Aunt Mary, the special aunt who let us eat ice cream when we came to visit, spoiling our dinner at grandmas. What has been helpful in times of mourning is actually remembering and reliving all the great memories.
I remember when I was a young always having the one dreadful feeling from when you knew you were going to be around extended family. All of the “He’s sooooo cute!”, “Look at his fat cheeks, I just want to pinch them!”, and “Come here and give (insert family member name here) a hug and a kiss” experiences may have indeed been a negligible portion of time in any given visit, but to a child, they can seem like eternity.
As a parent, I’ve always wondered what it would look like to view this experience from a different angle. So far I haven’t really been able to view my experiences in Nariah as it seems she just loves anything that has to do with family. In talking with my parents that night after hearing the news of my Aunt, they shared with me a story and picture that I was previously unaware of.
This past Thanksgiving was at my parents house and a few of our extended family members were there; including Aunt Mary. After much of the day had passed, Nariah asked “Why does everyone keep calling her Aunt Mary???”
Toya replies “Well… because she’s your Aunt Mary.”
“She’s my Aunt Mary?”
And like an excited little kid who just found a new toy, she goes over to Aunt Mary and climbs on her lap. To her, she has just discovered a new treasure, another family member. Its actually pretty heartwarming to see her so excited to learn and discover about her family members outside of our household.
Even though this picture is blurry, the cross generational bonding warms my heart.
We love you Aunt Mary… Rest In Peace… and tell Uncle Garrette when you see him; “If they don’t get you on the popcorn… they’ll get you on the peanuts”
grillsidestories 