Thankful Thursday - Great Role Models

The following pictures on this post are of me and my Aunt Mary.  

Aunt Mary was an awesome aunt. The person you confided in, sought advice from and sometimes borrowed money from. She was a lot of things to a lot of people, being a single mother throughout most of her adult life.

Aunt Mary loved traveling and would most times travel from ID to AR alone, much to the unhappiness of her sisters and family for safety's sake. But Aunt Mary was fierce, so brave!  To me, she wasn't afraid of anyTHING or anyONE.  She was just one of those daredevils who saw challenges as things to conquer or try to conquer.

Aunt Mary loved to garden, loved to fish, loved to travel and loved her family. 

In her backyard in Wilder, ID Aunt Mary would grow anything she could, often cooking meals consisting of foods grown in her backyard.  For the Fourth of July picnics she routinely harbored the goats that were subsequently served as the main courses of the barbecue.  A funny story: while transporting a pig that was going to be barbecued for an event, the pig jumped from the back of the truck. Aunt Mary chased it down and slit its throat while a few of my nieces watched the horrific scene. But Aunt Mary was not going to let the main course escape so she did what she had to do. This story is still a much told tale when reminiscing about growing up and some of our experiences.

When I received the news last year that Aunt Mary had died, I cried so hard and so long that I injured veins in my forehead. I went to urgent care because I thought something serious had happened. The on call nurse told me that had I been of lighter skin, I would see bruises from the breaks. For a few days after the news my forehead and face were so tender I had to sleep on my back and could barely use a face cloth to clean my face.

  

To the end of her life, Aunt Mary took care of her family and the church as best as she could, often driving from Pasco, WA to Boise, ID to visit family and attend church anniversaries. The repast held after the family was catered and paid by her, the last service of the Hospitality President. This Thursday, and every day, I'm thankful to God that He gave me (and the rest of my family) Mary Katherine because she was so unique and so important to me. I will never stop missing her.