As life would have it I was separated from my mother and aunts for most of my life from the age of 5.  The first time that I can recall visiting with Auntie Fran was in 1976 when I was pregnant with my second daughter.  She was always so sweet and made me feel welcomed even though her memories of me were only a few from when I was a baby.  She would tell me stories about when I was young and things that we would do together.   So much time has passed since then so the details have been forgotten.  When I think of her I think of what Maya Angelou said, " I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."  Aunty Fran was one of the few people in my family who made me feel as though I were precious and delightful.  As Maya said, I will never forget how she made me feel ~ worthy of love and celebrated as the first grandchild.

In 2010 my husband and I went to visit all my aunts and uncles in Alberta and had a great road trip to Calgary and then took a detour to Red Deer to see Aunty Fran getting lost in Red Deer but finally arriving at her home.  I always appreciated how cheerful she was even though she was in constant pain.  She wanted everything to be perfect for our visit.  We took her out for lunch after stopping in at a clinic where she had to pick something up.  Everyone called her by name and was thrilled to see her.  She was just that kind of person who drew the best out of people and it showed.   Although she didn't eat very much we had a good time visiting with her and then she invited us to stay the night insisting that we take her bed. 

It was the next morning that she shared photos of her childhood and early life and told us anecdotes about her life as a child and teenager being raised without a mother.  My husband sat at her feet holding her hand and telling her how much he appreciated everything that she shared especially since not all of it was rosy but he loved her vulnerability and how safe she felt with us to open up and tell us the things she did.  He wept when he heard the life that she had and admired how she lived her life with optimism.  It was the things that she said that gave him more insight into my life and Aunty Fran was the only one willing to tell us details of the past.

I will always remember her as such a kind welcoming soul.  I am thankful that she is out of pain and is in a place worthy of her and her special qualities.  May God bless you all as you grieve the loss of someone so precious.  She will be missed and I celebrate her having been born into our family!