Category Archives: family

Til Death Do Us Part

Posted in family, relationships by

I think I have finally figured out why I dislike The Notebook.  I know, GASP!  Don’t kill me, K?  Most of my friends love it because it’s a story of true love, standing strong until the end.  The husband falls in love with his wife and fights for her, despite the fact that she’s marrying another man, and they live this love story.  Even at the end, when she cannot remember who he is, he still comes and reads to her and reminds her of their life together.  Yes, I agree wholeheartedly that this is true love at it’s finest.  It’s the kind of love I hope to have when I grow old.  But this story, the tragic present that the old Noah and Allie live in, is not romantic.  Yet somehow that’s what the movie has become.  Some epically romantic movie of prevailing love.

Earlier this week my mother’s uncle Herman died very suddenly of a heart attack.  He left his wife, Willy, who is nine years older than he was and is in very poor health.  She can hardly see anymore and in recent years he had done everything for her.  Grocery shopping, cleaning, all paperwork, money, everything.  My grandparents, my mom, and I visited them a few years ago when I was in Holland, and I remember him even carefully helping her carry coffee into the living room, guiding her around furniture.  Yes, it was overwhelmingly kind and touching that he was doing all this for her, that he was there for her through it all, but at the same time it was so incredibly sad and horrible.  
The night Herman died, Willy sisters and brothers told my mother of a scene that I can’t quite shake.  Willy sat in her chair in the living room, maybe the light was muted and dust floated in the air, much like it did the day we visited.  Over and over she said, “how could he leave me?  How could he?”  She seemed utterly lost without him.  Her brothers and sisters offered their houses, begged to stay and help her through the night, but she refused.  She just wanted to sit in that chair, “I probably won’t even go to bed, I can’t sleep.”  
If this was The Notebook, Willy’s story would be spun to look romantic.  She spent her entire life loving him, he took care of her, now she’s pining away for his lost love.  I just can’t see it that way.  I just see an old woman, lost without her other half, who can’t even bring herself to move from her chair and go to bed, so she sits there, helplessly all through the night.  How is there even a shred of romance in that?  I know my grandparents and great aunts and uncles will take care of her.  They’ll stay with her, they’ll eventually insist that she comes to stay with them, but right now I’m only sad for her.
That was quite a depressing post.  

My thankfuls

Posted in family, friends by

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I hope you had a lovely day filled with food, family and friends. We spent the afternoon at the Coffin house and the evening at the Goodman house. I have not eaten that much in quite some time.

I have a lot going for me right now. Just thought a list could be appropriate.

I am thankful for…
…my family and that we are all healthy this year.
…our store and that it’s still making it through tougher times.
…Adam, who never ceases to amaze me in how wonderful he is.
…my girlfriends, without whom I would be so lost.
…my wigglebutt Mira and her unconditional and irrational love for me.
…my job. To have one right now and to enjoy it on most days.
…my kitchen. As tiny as it is, I’ve cooked a lot of food in there this year.
…downtown, which is a lot more fun than I could have imagined.
…the new friends I have made this past year and how easily they have accepted me into their circle.

I’m a lucky girl:)

the prettiest Pretty Pretty Princesses at Thanksgiving!

Purple Wandering Jew

Posted in family, weddings by

Oh my goodness, I am a giant hypocrite. We went to a wedding (two of Adam’s friends got married) this weekend. Lovely time overall. I loved meeting all of Adam’s friends from school. I know how important they are to him and I’m glad that I finally got to see that part of his life. Anyway, I kept my camera tucked in my purse most of the night since I had just met the majority of these people and felt inappropriate snapping lots of pictures. I did want a picture of the two of us though since I thought we looked all nice and dressed up. Plus my hair was miraculously straight! So end of the night rolls around, we’re waiting for our ride back to the hotel and I ask if one of the girls would mind taking a picture. She did, and then told us to do another one, this time kissing. And this is how I became a hypocrite. I’ve posted it on my Picasa page because, much like this blog, I think only a few people look at it. Oh what have I become?

(ok secretly, but don’t tell anyone please, I think it’s a cute picture! Eek!)
My dad continues to be my hero. He raised money for the relay for life in Zionsville this past weekend. To entice people he said he would paint himself purple if a certain amount of money was donated. He then told the Zionsville Merchants Association that if they could raise $1,000 he would shave his head. All necessary money was raised and my dad spent Friday purple and bald and insanely hyper. Plus he was able to donate at least $1,300 to the Relay for Life. Kicking cancer’s ass one purple bald dude at a time.