a post for auntie margy

a day or so after sam's second birthday party, we lost my aunt (my dad's sister). today i am drinking my coffee from one of her pretty cups and thinking about my memories of auntie margy:

- auntie liked to chat, and boy could she. if auntie called on the phone, you had to clear the next 30-90 minutes. she didn't call me all that often, but when she did it was a marathon of a talk (especially for me, as i tend to do anything in my power to avoid the phone).

- auntie enjoyed family traditions. she always brought breakfast on christmas (oh the strudel!), and potato salad for easter. i'll always remember having to find room in our little fridge for a very large container of potato salad.

- i remember auntie and her camera taking pictures. when i was little, her big camera with all its attachments and large flash seemed huge, and it made a huge impression on me (i've noticed that i'm now the aunt with the big camera chasing people around).

- auntie enjoyed having things be "just so" (i remember this about my grandma henderson as well—she always seemed a little frustrated when things weren't picture perfect, and i think auntie had a lot of that in her too). when i was younger i remember visiting and admiring her "purple bathroom" where everything was color coordinated (my favorite color at the time was purple). she also had a yellow bathroom and a "citrus" kitchen with shades of yellow, orange, and green—with coordinating appliances, no less.

- auntie enjoyed her nieces and nephews, and especially their children (her grand-nieces and grand-nephews). we had many a chat about how fascinating it was to watch us all growing, and i will never forget the famous "peek" episode that sam had with auntie last fall while visiting dad in the hospital. it was something that auntie particularly remembered about sam (and he remembered about her). in fact, during our last visit she recapped many of the stories she had collected about her surrogate grandchildren, and we talked about what kind of personality the newest addition (little alice, just brand new ten days before) would turn out to have.

i am remembering all these things and making a note to clear a space in my next life, because i'm sure that when i see auntie we will have a nice, long chat, and there will be a lot of catching up to do.