it's a beautiful life: Aunt "Three"

My Great Aunt Marie Van Sickle passed away last week, unfortunately. She was one of the sweetest tender souls I have ever come across. This loss was not easy but it was most difficult because I got to witness how it ~~badly~~ it effected my mom. Seeing our loved ones deal with a significant loss is never an easy task. It broke my heart to see my mom so broken. She may have been broken from the loss but she spoke such wonderful, kind words in honor of my Aunt Marie at her funeral service. One thing that I'll always remember is that my mom used to refer to Aunt Marie as Aunt Three while growing up because she couldn't pronounce her name properly.

With us living in Salt Lake and Las Vegas all of my life I only came in contact with my Aunt Marie a few times. I will never forget how sweet she was to me. She was full of compliments and kind words always. She was beautiful on the inside and out. She also was very loyal to her husband, Van & that's something I admire her for. They were soul mates and they spent many of their years together traveling across the country and square dancing in competitions.

My Aunt Marie did not have kids of her own so she spoiled my mom & her siblings quite a bit. They were her only nieces and nephews. She also left behind her sister, Hazel. My Great Aunt Hazel has dementia but she doesn't suffer from it. She's one of the most happy, cheerful elderly people I have ever come in contact with. She's the sweetest thing. She approaches everyone as if they're her best friend and when it's time to go she lets you know she loves you ~~without~~ hesitation. She only remembers a few people, of course, those she's been around her entire life like my Aunt Marie and my Grandad, Elbert, who has also passed. My Aunt Hazel will be moving to Salt Lake and I'm so envious of my siblings. I would love to able to have dinner with her occasionally at her care center. She kept us laughing the entire time we were there with her hilarious jokes. She even mentioned that she wanted to go skinny dipping at my aunt's hotel pool!

It was so nice to see so many of my family members from my mom's side that I haven't seen in years. I was also so thrilled to be able to spend time with my siblings and some of my little monkeys. It's never easy living so far from my loved ones, it's extremely hard at times. I loved being able to spend time with my siblings, even if we didn't do much. You don't need to do fun, exciting things when you're around my family, just them, being them, is fun & exciting enough. I miss them already & look forward to August when I can see them all again!