November is a month of remembrance for me.
I celebrated the memory of my baby sister this last week. Lost from my sight 13 years ago. I spent much time thinking of her, remembering her and loving her. While I may not see her by my side anymore, she is always visible in my thoughts. She brings me comfort now, after so many years. The tears of loss I shed now are so wonderfully tainted with love and remembrance. So many good things that she brought to my life and to the life of so many others. Never in this world have I found a more vivid example of selflessness and unconditional love. Taken so early from this world, at the tender age of 12 she managed to make an unmistakable difference in the lives of others. Her bright soul reached out to everyone around her; encouraging hope, happiness, friendship, and kindness. At her funeral, so many of her classmates were present, leaving flowers, stuffed animals, bracelets, and notes in her casket, that we had to push them to her feet to see her face. I dearly hope that I may be just a little like her in my interactions with others.
I also remember my uncle this month, killed by a drunk driver on a dark canyon road 5 years ago. This man, my mothers brother, taught me something that I will never forget. He taught me the joy of unconditional love. He married a woman whom he loved more than anything in this world, and not once in all the years of their marriage did that love ever waiver even a fraction. When she suffered from sever postpartum depression, he would come home on lunch breaks to make sure that the babies were cared for because he knew that she couldn't. When his children were grown, and disagreed with their mother, he set them straight, telling them that she would always be held first in his heart and they would respect her or they would not be welcome in her home. As a child he singled me out. Did things with me that my own father never did. Took me fishing... that was our special thing. One fishing trip my aunt came along. As we set quietly waiting for the tug on our poles, he leaned over and whispered in my ear "I always catch more when shes here. The fish come up to see how beautiful she is." It is my deepest wish that someday, someone will love me how he loved my aunt. If i were to find that, I would have found the greatest gift in all the world.
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--Jenn
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