Twenty-two years ago today I lost one of my best friends and supporters when my dear grandma passed away. She had been in and out of the hospital since September of that year, and had my mom and I not convinced her to let us take her to hospital, we would've lost her that night after Labour Day. I spent that first fretful night holding her hand as she was hooked up and treated, and ultimately with the exception of one brief journey home, she would spend much of the next three months there.
The day she passed away I had went to collect our Christmas tree and ended up getting stuck on the side of the mountain. It was a horrible morning, and when I arrived home to a ringing phone I thought it was Kells' Towing calling me to advise me on the status of retrieving my mom's truck stuck up the road. Much to my shock, it was the hospital calling to tell us, tell me as I was the only one home, that my grandma had passed away earlier that morning. It was December 14th, 1993 - two days before my birthday. Her funeral was on my birthday, and it was one of my saddest days ever.
The following is the eulogy I composed for her that December afternoon so that the priest would understand who my grandma was to us all. I hope you all enjoy this decidedly different post.
"Edith Carefoot was affectionately known as "mom" and "Gram" to her children and grandchildren. She was generous and kind, and a very good listener when you needed someone to talk to. She was always there for you, no matter what. She had a great sense of humour and loved to hear funny stories. She was an excellent cook and loved to surprise you with "treats." She loved kids and animals, ands was always taking in strays and feeding other peoples cats and dogs. She loved flowers, especially peonies, roses, african violets and irises. She loved to read the newspapers and watch television and keep informed of all the news. She also loved country music , and was a person who never seemed to grow old. She loved to draw and make things with grandson Sandy, and always encouraged him to keep on with his artistic talents. She looked forward to decorating her Christmas tree with him each year, an always liked to remind him of the year that the tree fell over on them, balls breaking on their heads. She loved going shopping with my mom (Mary) and I, and was well liked by everyone she met. She loved to reminisce about the past, and she had an excellent memory for names, events and places. Overall, she was a very private person who enjoyed the simple pleasures in life, and thought more of giving than receiving. Even throughout her illness, she never complained. She just looked forward to your coming to see her. More than anything else, she just wanted everyone to be happy."
The sketch above was a picture of her Ontario Street home I was working on to give to her as a Christmas present that year. I put the original copy with her in her coffin as a goodbye from me. The picture below is of us together at our Osler Bluff Road home at Christmas in the very early 1980's.
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