A Sea of Red

Yesterday, I grabbed my red purse...

Put on a red bling necklace...

And a cuff bracelet with large red stones...

I applied my favorite red lipstick...

And I cried just a little as I put on this locket.  My mom had given to my Aunt Carol for Christmas one year, Carol gave it to me before she died.  Inside are pictures of my mother and her three sisters. Mom had made one for each of her sisters and they had worn them to Mom's funeral. 

Even Amanda put on her favorite red shoes.

We went and paid tribute, and thanked God, for the life of my Aunt Carol.  Her favorite color just happened to be...yep...red!

Red is the color of courage so it seemed quite fitting to find a sea of red at Carol's funeral.  Anybody who is courageously living life after the loss of loved ones deserves to wear red.

Since red also represents strength and love, I find it no coincidence that it was my aunt's favorite.  She lived much of her life with harsh challenges and a lot of pain.  She did it with strength and love. 

 A few months ago, I helped her move from one apartment to another.  We packed up a red toaster, red microwave, red stand mixer, red trivets.  I found some beautiful red drinking glasses in her cupboard.  She was so excited about them, she had just purchased them the day we had gone to lunch with her sisters, my Aunt Nonie and Aunt Lynette.  It was the day after my mom's funeral.  I took great care to make sure that these glasses arrived at her new home undamaged.  They were beautiful.

I'm grateful to have had the last five months to spend with her since my mother's death.  She loved my mom more than anything in this world and talking to Carol always made me feel better. My children loved going to her house, she always had some chocolate for them to eat.  She was always so happy to entertain my kids even though I'm sure they wore her out!

Although I am sad for the loss of my dear aunt, I can't help but feel like all is right with the world.  The five months that she and my mom were separated from each other must have felt like forever.  They truly were two halves of a whole.  I'm so grateful to her for being my mom's big sister and best friend.  The world now has two fewer examples of unconditional love.  But, they left a lot of posterity to carry on.  My prayer is that I will be able to take that love, perfect it in myself, and pass it on to my children.  What a great way to honor such beautiful women...women who set the bar quite high.  What a legacy they leave behind.

Merry Christmas Mom and Aunt Carol. 

I love you.