Tuesday, May 12, 2009

A journey we all.....



must make...That old saying "Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same." The latter part of the poem was never so true as when we met "Mrs. Dorothy"
or "Dot" as she liked to be called, she came into our lives almost 4-1/2 years ago. But I felt uncomfortable calling her anything but "Mrs. Dorothy",she was a sprite 96 yr. old fraile looking little woman of German descent,who could run circles around me...(who am I kidding everyone can do that!!)...She tended her vegetable gardens, yard, home and all she met with much love and joy, of course she had family who was very devoted to her too. I marveled at how she could live all by herself and be so efficient,but she somehow managed it and still there was always time to sit and talk and oh could she talk, so many tales !!! She lived next door to my husbands business, on neatly kept property with beautiful old pecan and oak trees all about.
Every weekend my son and husband would go see " Mrs. Dorothy " and mow her yard and help gather all the fallen wood debris on her property and other odd jobs that needed tending, then they would come home triumphantly, showing me their hard earned prize of snickerdoodles or some other cookies, that Mrs. Dorothy had so thoughtfully baked for them,mostly for my son Walker,and he would remind anyone that came close to them!
Our dear Mrs. Dorothy, had been fighting a battle that she had previously won
or so we thought...
We went to see her for what would be the last time at a hospice,we wanted her to be well but in our hearts we knew it couldn't be. My husband and me, didn't know whether to let our 14 yr. old son go ,in the end we let him make the decision.
He wanted to go and although it was hard to watch my son as he cried,we knew he had to say his goodbyes to her." Mrs. Dorothy " seemed so happy to see him and was alert enough to hug him and call him "My Walker" one last time....Our sweet "Mrs. Dorothy" is finally at rest and our lives will never be the same....
cancer is such an ugly thing.
Blessings,Flora

24 comments:

~Tonya said...

What a "touching" story, Flora. Mrs. Dorthy can finally rest and not have to fight any more.

I am sure she will miss all of you, just as all of you will miss her...

Our paths in life always "cross" others for a certain reason. We may not ever really know why, but each person in our lives, change who we are.

I am so very sorry for your loss. Take Care.

Hugs,
~Tonya

yoborobo said...

I'm so sorry for your loss, Flora. She sounds like she was a very lovely lady.

Jdee said...

Life is a stage.. then we bow and the curtain closes... but for that moment we were a star on that platform of life.
Now your friend is a Star in the heavens twinkling down on you.
My deepest sympathy to your family~
xoxo

Flora said...

Tonya,Yorboro and Joanna, No doubt our Mrs. Dorothy is by now telling her tales to some good soul and when we see the brightest star at night, we'll take comfort knowing it's Mrs.Dorothy. Many thanks for all your wonderful words of comfort.
Blessings,Flora

Once Upon A Blue Crow said...

'Mrs. Dorothy' sounded like a gem to know!We're all so lucky if we've had someone like her in our lives. Indeed they do leave footprints on our hearts.

God Bless,

Kim

BoneyLittleFingers said...

Flora, this was a lovely post and shows us all that if we are lucky and share ourselves with others, our small worlds are enriched with pure affection.

Sending you a {hug}.
Karen

Flora said...

Thank You so much Karen, she was a good soul and I know everyone who met her loved her.
Blessings,Flora

Tracy M. said...

What a lovely friendship and remembrance . We had a similar situation with our next door neighbor and our youngest son. It's good for them to be able to say good bye. Best wishes to you all,
Tracy M.

Flora said...

Tracey, I know they need their goodbyes, you can't help but wonder though?Thanks you for your kind comments!!
blessings,Flora

Patty Benedict said...

Flora...how lucky you are to have been touched by such a wonderful soul. Mrs. Dorothy will be watching over your family!
BIG Hugs!!!!
Patty

Monkey-Cats Studio said...

I'm so glad she had you and you had her the last 4 1/2 years Flora. Life brings us or sends us to people and obviously you both gained from the interaction. You and your family have my deepest sympathy.
Laurie

Flora said...

Many Thanks Patty and Laurie, wouldn't it be great if everyone could have a lovely little Mrs.Dorothy in our lives ...always?
blessings,
Flora

PEA said...

Flora,
what a lovely tribute to a dear friend in your life. I am sure she smiled at the kind words you gave in her honor.
It is hard when those who mean so much to us have gone on and we are left behind. Just try and rejoice in the fact that you knew her, touched her life and she called you a friend. Being someone's friend is a honor and blessing.
Even though a hard way to go, a nice way in knowing she was loved. So many go out of this time and into the next without ever knowing that.
Thank you for sharing my dear. I am sorry for your loss but glad in your gain. You have a friend in her till you meet again.
Hugs,Pea

Flora said...

Pea,
Mrs. Dorothy said the next time we met it would be in heaven, I fooled her and came back again the next day and she was still alert and hanging on for who knows what,she responded and said a few words, but she was already losing her fight...she was so tired but only slept for short periods, she told me " Oh Flora , all I want to do is close my eyes and just sleep"
mercifully she finally did.
blessings,
Flora

Oops! Desperate Blogger~ said...

Glora,
I'm sure Mrs. Dorothy's life was so blessed by you and yours...and the stories in heaven she'll tell...

Flora said...

Thankc you so much Cindy, for those kind words.
blessings,Flora

Kristine said...

ooooh...
I'm so sorry your family has lost such a special friend..I had a special friend like that(my middle name is named after her)I can't tell ya what it is..she had sworn me to secrecy cause she HATED her middle name too!!..ROFL..
She also lost her battle to cancer, and now 5 years later,her husband just came out of lung surgery for cancer..(NO he never smoked)..Cancer is a scary disease and I"ve lost many loved ones to it..
Hugs to you!!
xox

Anonymous said...

Love your dolls they are truly wicked. Totally awesome!

LDWatkins said...

Our lives are interwoven and made so much richer by people like 'Mrs. Dorothy'. Bless your family. You will forever miss her.

twinkle teaches said...

Very touching post. Prayers for Miss Dorothy. She sounds like she was a great person. Hugs,
tina

Flora said...

Kristine, Julie-ann,L.D. and Tina,
Many thanks for the sweet comments.
blessings,Flora

William Bezek said...

I'm sorry for your loss, and happy for your gain in knowing Dorothy.

Amy Gethins Sullivan said...

~I am so sorry for your loss, of such a precious soul.~Friendships like this are sweet reminders of what this life is all about.~
~I love the "little old lady's" in my life.They have so much to teach.
and
~hope that someday, I too can be a loved "little old lady".

Flora said...

William and Amy aren't we all better people for knowing the "Dorothy's" in our lives, Thanks you both.
Amy I'm sure you will.

blessings,