My sister, Jacq, has been able to get past that 'loose ends' feeling that a death sometimes leaves with us. Our Aunt Mary died last June. For me it has been that feeling of not saying the right things when I could. Not being being the letter writer that would have kept us in touch with one another. All that 'should' stuff.
For Jacq it is different. She kept in touch. She probably even said all the right things. She still had that 'up in the air' feeling. BUT, before Aunt Mary died she passed on to Jacq some of her creative materials -- fabric, ric rac, ribbon -- and a bunch of yarn. After many months had passed Jacq decided to revisit a long unused skill and crochet that yarn into a shawl.
The result as you can see is just beautiful. And she has worked through her grief and has closure on the death. And now I can publish this with the eulogy below that I started many months ago and could not complete. I leave it in its incompleteness. It's okay. My grieving has come to an end through Jacq's project.
Thank you, Jacq.
Good Bye, Aunt Mary.
Mary Catherine Walters Bancroft
December 7, 1907 - June 30, 2010
Aunt Mary was my father's older sister. The end of her generation. Predeceased by her husband, two brothers, and her only son and daughter; survivor of breast cancer, and accomplished artist. I choose to remember the "artist." She is a role model for me in that genre. Always experimenting with new media,
