Dear Friends,
You would have loved my mother. A country girl who never pretended to be other than that, she mothered not only her own children, but nearly everyone whose life intersected hers.
Mother, wife, and grandmother truly comprised her vocation, and she did these things with a quiet devotion and constancy that made them seem effortless. She left to Dad the coaching of their five children’s minds and actions; her work was the care of their hearts, and she accomplished this with simple, unquestioned, daily love.
As my siblings and I grew to adulthood, she affirmed every choice we made – who to marry, when to have children, which profession to pursue, where to live. She celebrated our successes, grieved our setbacks, and longed for the Sundays when we all would gather with our growing families at her home for food and laughter. When I think of the “heavenly banquet to come,” I imagine something very like this.
In the last 10 years or so, Alzheimer’s Disease had slowly, cruelly stripped from Mom the memories she cherished and the identity which had influenced so many. She had slowly forgotten our lives, but we could not forget hers. Twenty-five family members gathered yesterday afternoon to hold her hand and say goodbye.
Much of what I know of Jesus I first learned in relationship with my mother: the desire for my health and happiness and goodness, the grief at my failures, the longing for my loving presence, the joy of the family gathering. I wish you could have known her.
Wishing you every blessing,
Mtr. TJ
Sue’s life will be celebrated at Leavitt Funeral Home in Belpre, Ohio, this coming Saturday at 11 AM. Visitation with the Azar family will take place Friday evening from 6 to 8 PM and for an hour before the service on Saturday. In lieu of flowers, donations in Sue’s memory may be directed to Hospice Services, 450 Pike St., Suite 11, Marietta, OH 45750.