The title of today's blog is a reference to a song by Roy Rogers and his wife, Dale Evans. For the youngsters in the audience, just Google them. For the rest of us, we know who they are and can probably all sing that song. And sing we did.
Tuesday we celebrated the passing of my Aunt Eva. She had lived for 100 incredible years. (Yet any of us would tell you she's gone too soon!) Eva was my fathers oldest sister. The family matriarch for many, many years.
As with any passing, family gathers together to share the grief and the love. With our family, we also share the stories and the laughter. Maybe that is what makes our family so special. We have a difficult time staying somber for very long. That's not to say we can't.....we just don't! Many things in life can be depressing. Many things can get you down. Our family has always had the ability to look on the bright side. No matter how bad, there's always a bit of blue sky to celebrate. Something good to bring us out of our funk.
Aunt Eva summed it up best. "Life is beautiful" was not just her signature saying, it was the core of her belief. And we all believed. We still do.
It's for that very reason that when we all gathered graveside to bid our final farewells, we gathered close, held each other and sang "Happy Trails".
The memories, the stories, the life lessons will live on. Most importantly, the love lives on. It runs through each of us, connecting us by a golden thread. Our family tapestry is beautiful to behold. Thank you, Aunt Eva for helping us to weave. We love you. Until we meet again, happy trails.
