Time is Moving On...Again

I lost my mother when I was seventeen years old. I lost my father to West Nile Virus when I was 42. Both deaths were totally unexpected and horribly devastating.

I received a call from my dear friend Elizabeth today, telling me that one of my parents dearest friend's was terminally ill and had perhaps only a few days to live. This wonderful gentleman has known me my entire life and was one of the speakers at my own father's funeral. It was a heartwarming and hilarious eulogy...I am sure that my father and mother enjoyed it immensely from their seats in Heaven.

He was my dad's tennis partner for years and years...if it had rained too hard the night before they would squeegee off the courts and play anyway.

This dear man's wife is the one that taught my mother to drive a car. I remember them telling me about sitting stuck on a hill in Atlanta until my mother finally mastered how to use the clutch.

When I was little and my parents went out of town, I was shipped off to their house for the weekend...it was NEVER dull! They always had a house full of kids, and not only their own four. Every Sunday was football day in the field behind their house. Teenagers came over and parked in their front yard...literally. It was covered more by cars than grass in those days.

They lived not a half a block from a local Fire Station. If the sirens went off, Mrs. Kinnett would yell for everyone to pile in the staion wagon and off we would go to see some action!

I grew up with this entire family in the East Point Christian Church...a rocking place to be when I was a kid. At one time we had over 400 in just the youth program alone.

This family has the greatest sense of humor that you have ever seen (and I think that means a lot coming out of THIS mouth).

This wonderful couple were the last people that my own father recognized when he fell ill with West Nile Virus. They came into the room to find us three siblings in despair over my father being in such an altered state. He opened his eyes when they walked in and called them both by the nicknames that we knew them by.

They stayed and visited with us, telling us hilarious stories and bringing us often times to tears.

Mr Kinnett told us that his only daughter was getting remarried (let's just say not for the second time). He said she was upset because they couldn't make the rehearsal dinner in Florida. He said he explained to her he thought he knew his part by now and considered when the minister asked "Who gives this woman"? to respond "It's us again". I will never forget that story and it made us laugh so hard when we were all so sad inside...that is just the way with this family. They are all uplifting, funny and spiritual.

I hate that this family is going through this drawn out goodbye...it makes it so hard just WAITING for the moment to come.

My family is lucky in that respect...as my brother says "Our family takes the express checkout".

My parents have another dear friend on the way to join them.

I feel blessed to have this extended family in my life and hope that they fill their sadness with fond , funny stories and memories that will carry them through the rest of their lives.

This world is moving on and taking yet another loved one from our physical grasp, but sending him straight into the arms of salvation and an eternity with no pain, sadness or illness.

It is hard to realize that HE is the lucky one...I know I feel lucky just to have had this wonderful man in my life for almost 49 years and know that he has loved me like his own for my entire life. Time moves on, leaving us sad and sorry that another part of our life is gone.

My thoughts and prayers are with this extended family and I hope they know how very much they all have meant to me for the last 48 years. My life is much richer for having them as friends.