Dear Aunt Marilyn,
I am sorry I couldn’t be there with you to thank you for your love and friendship and wish you a “fare thee well” as you started your next journey. It is a bit ironic you chose to depart on my mom’s birthday…she would have been 88 and I am certain she was waiting for you with open arms to celebrate. Ronnie was probably standing right next to her waiting to tease you. 😊
My earliest memories of you are at 228 Oak Street. You and Noel used to humor me and play “dress up” …I was allowed to try on some of your scarves and jewelry, etc. I remember one gauzy silk scarf particularly well that faded from pink to white and I thought it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Somehow in my child’s mind I convinced myself that you and Noel were beautiful princesses…one with long black hair (you) and one with long blonde hair (Noel). I told so many of my peers at that time about the princesses that I knew.
I also remember how sweet and kind you always were to me and what a treat it was when you let me stay in your home. I thought your house was magic as well…a spacious palace with a back yard that hosted more delights. The perspective is not so surprising when one is used to military housing. I remember walking down the street to get ice cream…maybe there was a Dairy Queen but I think it had another name?
And then there was the time when I was eight and you made me a bologna and cheese sandwich on rye. (and yes I forgive you! 😊) I wasn’t really feeling well but obediently ate the sandwich anyways…and subsequently had several bouts of intense vomiting which later turned out to be the flu. But I blamed the rye bread, and it left a lifelong scar…to this day rye bread is the only food in the world I can’t bear to even smell…and I’ve eaten some interesting food, especially in Asia.
When Noel returned to 228 Oak Street and made it her own, I loved the wonderful dinners Noel would prepare for the three of us. That time away from the hustle and bustle of a global career and raising four kids was literally a mental, physical, and spiritual sanctuary for me. After I lost my mother, your conversation and counsel became even more precious to me as I coped with some of my own life challenges.
So, I wish you eternal blessings and I know that my life was better because of you. I love you very much and you will be missed my beautiful princess Aunt Marilyn!
All my love,
Your niece Rhonda
XXX
