oh the balance of life..

This one is going to take most the day because the words I frame it with are so very important.  My Aunt Gail slipped away this morning at the quiet hour of three am.  And now she is free...

Her captor was cancer and like so many others the end means no longer would agony and suffering have to be endured.  It is now the people who love her that are left with the pain.  Her wish however is that under no circumstances would there be any formal kind of service, instead she requested a party.  This I know is why I love her and am part of her because I too have stated it to be my desire as well.  Except that costumes will also be required. 
And so it is that a gathering of Gail admirers will commence in their barefeet and celebrate the life that has now become bigger.  In the background The Doors will serenade us as we retell the stories that now seem to be so significant.  I am sure she will be surprised to find out there are so many.  For myself it is as small as a dinner in which I realised that I preferred adamently canned green beans to her freshly picked ones.  Or perhaps it's the bull whip she revealed on one of our reunion adventures in which that certain bull whip was also demonstrated quite authoritatively in the small kitchen.  It could be her tremendous laugh that always made you smile or the fact she could belch louder than any human I have ever encountered.  I admit selfishly that I will miss her yearly Christmas ornament and will relish in the fairies that she bestowed upon me.  The opportunity to feel blessed by her presence alleviates the sadness.
So to say that you have to live every day as though it could be your last is becoming almost redundant.  The many times I have heard it uttered almost brings me to a cringe but I can't help but think that we haven't gotten it yet.  Loving your neighbor, friend, foe and family and living each day the best you can - really is the most important thing you can do because we are only here for just a little while.