My first real friends were my cousins. Perhaps yours were also. I have 33 first cousins. Yes, you read that correctly. I was one of the oldest, which I liked. It meant that most times, I was a ring leader, especially for the girls. Depending on which side of the family we visited determended the type of play that transpired. And just how bossy I could become!
This particular memory is of my mother's side. I am writing about my younger cousin Laura. She was 4 or 5 years younger than me, the daughter of my mother's oldest sister. I was the oldest girl cousin and, yes, very bossy. Laura's older sister and my little sister were the same age and hung out. My job was to watch out for them as we all played together--making sure they toed the line. My relationship with Laura was a little unique as we had many things (despite our age) in common. One of which was our love for animals--primarily horses. Man, could that little girl draw! She would sit for hours drawing pictures of the most beautiful horses. I loved seeing them as I had absolutely zero drawing ability. We would sit for hours talking about horses and dogs, sharing books and movie recommendations, and loved being together. Even though several years separated us, we were very compatible.
For many years, as I was growing up, my family would go to theirs for Thanksgiving or Christmas. My aunt always bought my sister and me little gifts that meant so much. I have such great memories.
And then something horrible happened. My aunt, uncle, and 2 of my cousins were killed in a horrific private plane crash. Laura and her older sister were not on the plane and were left without their parents and siblings. They were only 16 and 18 years old. Laura went to live with her older sister and, in my opinion, never fully recovered emotionally from that horrific accident.
Still, though, we remained close--the 3 of us, and lived close by each other for many years. Laura had a son and then eventually a grandson. She had her job, raised her child, and had a few friends. As the years went on, she became more and more withdrawn. She developed some major medical problems and had significant weight issues. The more weight she gained, the more of a recluse she became. When I would come back home for a family visit (from 2500 miles away), she would make excuses not to be able to join in on our cousin's family reunions. It made me so sad.
We conversed via Facebook and emails, and she even commented on my blogs. She was a faithful reader. I loved reading her posts, opinions, funny memes, and comments. Oh, how I shall miss that. You see, she passed away last week in her home of natural causes. Most likely heart failure. She was alone and seated at her desk, probably getting ready to type something funny on Facebook. Just a few hours before, she had posted funny comments on some of my grandchild's photos. And, now she's gone.
That fast, that quickly, her death sneaked up on us all. I shall miss her tremendously. However, her sister, who is now my closest cousin, my soul sister cousin, shall miss her the most. She will need loads of prayer. She now has lost her entire immediate family. Thank you, God, that she also has lots of cousins to pray for her. She has an awesome husband and three wonderful children to help her through this loss. She has great friends and a wonderful church family. And she will need them because a loss like this is a significant loss.
I will miss you, Laura. I know that if you were reading this blog, you'd be telling me not to be so sad. You would be telling me that you are happy. That you are not only with your God, but you are finally with your mom and dad, your brother and sister, and with our grandparents! You would tell me--it's ok, I'm happy. So, Laura, I will heed your words, and I'll be happy for you and take care of your sister--don't worry.
Rest in peace, sweet cousin; I shall miss you forever.
