For Aunt Belva

On Thursday I got an email from my dad saying that my great Aunt Belva had passed away. I got in my car and drove to Indiana that day and drove the rest of the way to Maryland the next day, went to the funeral, stayed through Sunday, drove back to Indiana on Monday and made it home to Wisconsin on Tuesday. I didn't know Aunt Belva too well, at least compared to her children and grandchildren, but she still made an impact on me. I couldn't explain it, but when I heard that she had passed I knew I just had to come back to Maryland to the funeral. I just had to say "goodbye" to her. I'm glad I did. I remember at the family reunions that she would always smile at me and have delicious treats for us kids. For a little girl, family reunions were fun but it was a bit daunting walking around among the adults. I had cousins and siblings to play with but of course the older family members wanted to talk to us and say how much we'd grown. Aunt Belva was just always kind to me. Sure, we all have our flaws and I personally don't like it when people say you can't speak a bad word about the dead. Not that we want to drag their name through the dirt... I suppose my dad said it best. He was truthful. Aunt Belva was like her parents. They had a hard life. They worked hard and could be gruff but they also had a lot of love to give to their family. Aunt Belva, like her mother, loved flowers. So, for her, I'm posting a picture of some flowers that just popped out in our front yard last spring. No promotion today.