Yesterday my Aunt Eunice passed away at age 90. There is heartbreak and relief. Relief because the last thing she would want for her proud, intellectual self would be to live in a nursing home with dementia. Heartbreak because I did have a bond with her that was important.
She had expectations for me. She and my Grandmother had announced me as their savoir historian. I was to be keeper of the family history, saver of all things, and investigator of further detective work yet to be uncovered.
Aunt Eunice use to say to me, “Whenever I miss my mother, I just think and realize where she is, she’s with you, riding happily in your backseat, going with you to the Mayflower Library”. Once I replied back that I did in fact feel Inez’s presence but at times could swear I heard bickering. Eunice replied without hesitation, that means that Auntie Ruth is with her. They are probably both joining you at the library.(My own mother confirmed that, yes, Inez and her sister Ruth bickered constantly)
And now Eunice has gone as well. No more questions, no more answers, the end date came. But I am here, writing this blog, chasing ancestors, doing research, and savoring the items given to me to preserve. I will miss her terribly. I already miss our phone calls and letters and her witty reflections and sarcastic answers. She served as a great role model for me.
I can take comfort in the fact that I am here doing the job she hoped I would do. I am here carrying on keeping watch that the information doesn’t die. And in doing so, I keep them all alive.
I love you Aunt Eunice!
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