Edith

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Celebration of lIfe article

I have written a blog article to share with the world about my mom. There will be a few others over time.

Monday, November 10, 2008

A special thank you for special people

While going through my mother's things, I came across numerous cards from her friends in her Christadelphian church. One particular group of ladies, they call the "sisters class" or international sisters group, sent her cards many times. In addition to that, some of her friends corresponded with her continuously.

One person in particular sent her an email every day she was in the hospital and of course, she never came back to open her email. The efforts and special thoughts were numerous, not only during her sickness, but over the past couple of years and probably more.

I, for one, am grateful that there are such people in this world both inside and outside a religious organization and a reminder to me of the love people can put forth through effort and time, to make a person know that she is loved and thought about. Thank you so much!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Randy's Last Eulogy - A Model Mother Indeed!

My perspective of my mother as her child. My mother was a mother til the day she died. Even in dying she was being a mother. These are the major legacies in my mind that I want to share in her departure.

Bird watching was part of the love of nature that she taught to me. It started for me when I was sick with the Hong Kong Flu. She took me to a park in Corpus Christi to watch migratory birds. I remembered every bird she taught me in that one week. I use that knowledge daily when I watch birds. I am indebted to her for loving nature as I do.

College Education was super important to her. She lectured to me regularly about it. One day I woke up and saw she was right. It was the door to a standard of living. Never was anything proven to be so right and done so well as that in my entire life. I am indebted to her for that realization and that persistence and unselfish love.

Religion was equally important to her. My faith remains with me today because of her. She lived in isolation away from others of like faith and that always bothered her a lot. She ended up bringing my dad into the Christadelphian faith. That work of hers for him and I changed his and my life. I am indebted to her for that.

Self Confidence was a gift given to me by her. She praised me often and did it in love so that I could stand up in life to life's many trials. She wanted me to be stronger than her. I am indebted to her for molding me into me.

I will sorely miss her. She more than did her job as a good mother.

Sarah's Poem to her Grandmother at funeral

A wife, a mother, a grandma too,
This is the legacy we have from you.

You taught us love and how to fight,
You gave us strength, you gave us might.

A stronger person would be hard to find,
And in your heart, you were always kind.

You fought for us all in one way or another,
Not just as a as a wife, not just as a mother.

For all of us you gave your best,
Now the time has come for you to rest.

So go in peace, you have earned your sleep,
Your love in our hearts, we'll eternally keep.

We will miss you Grannie!

Friday, October 10, 2008

And that day, Mother was speachless!

It is common knowledge that my mother could talk your head off. She knew every trick in the book to be heard. She knew how to talk and listen at the same time. Some weakness in her method revealed that she occassionally missed a few things and would repeat what she said in an effort to make sure she was heard. One day, she had nothing to say. It was my 25th birthday. I do not know what prompted this note, but it was worth keeping in her scrapbook.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

My mother's scrapbook is a plastic bag

My mother's scrapbook is a clear plastic bag. It is sealed with a zipper and was not protected from the light. Yet the papers remained readable through decades, stored in her dark closets. I have not scanned everything but did select items that I know will be interesting and often meaningful for my family. These are shared because I believe our friends will be interested in much of this as well.

Click on images to see larger text for easier readability on any document or photo.

Mother valued pretty things with color, her family, her church and its principles, an advanced education, skills, the piano, the garden, quiet times, financial independence, good credit rating. She had many memories of the great depression, affecting her financial decisions. She constantly looked for Christ to return at every turn of world events.

Important things she wanted us to remember -

The War

My dad served in the Pacific. He was stationed at Randolph Air Base in San Antonio, thus my name. He was overseas building airbases to hold islands from the Japonese when I was born. Yes, Randy was in the war also although but a baby and at the very end of the war. Mother did not use all of my stamps. Aunt Avis supporting the war. Family Events

Mother's wedding announcement Aunt Avis won a recipe contest in Miami Oklahoma.

Marriage of Uncle Ken and Aunt Avis.
Aunt Sharon's wedding announcement. She is the youngest sibling of my mother. Ernest W. Banta Passes away - mother's rememberance poem. Russell recognition for excellence Sharon was selected to attend a special learning event due to her scholastic performance. Sharon, Valedictorian with a perfect grade, 1956. Sharon top of grade - recognition in Mason newspaper Sharon and BK's wedding announcement. The saddest event by far was a tragedy where two members of the family were killed instantly while working on a water well. This happened shortly after our family went out to the ranch for an evening get together of the family. I remember going to Alvie's place and seeing many jackrabbits run across the long dirt road to the ranch. I also recall the butter from the butter churn on fresh bread. Yummmmmm! Leah Passmore Johnson (Mom's sister) passes away. I remember her and the family quite well. She would always bring us firecrackers for Christmas.

Family Photos

Aunt Avis was quite pretty. She was mother's sister, the second born to Mom. Mother was the eldest. Gail at an unknown age. Mother and Dad's 50th wedding anniversary photo. Aunti Clara, sister of Mom Tinsley. Four generations. Mother was particularly proud of this photograph. Unsure who these two folks are.

Family documents

Mother was really proud of her typing speed, more than 100 accurate words per minute. The typewriter smoked!!!! My dad was proud of his performance as a bus driver. He explained how to make passengers comfortable by letting off of the brake when I was learning to drive. Words never to be forgotten. Mother's mom, Dora Tinsley, who we simply called "Mom" sent this letter to mother when we lived on Bartlett Dr in Corpus Christi. I believe that happened when I was in the 5th grade making the date of this letter somewhere around 1953. Page 1 of the letter from Mom on the accounting ledger letterhead of her dress store. Page 2 of the letter. Vella Jean wrote this card for Father's Day. Year unknown. Mom's drivers license

Edith's Poems

Mother had strong deep feelings about many things in her life. When she was young, she lacked confidence in herself but wrote poems, most times keeping them to herself. Although she was a pretty girl, she felt ugly, a feeling instilled into her by her mother. Her mother actually told her she was not pretty. Knowing my grandmother, that was designed to benefit her but was an old strategy to shift life focus and priorities from the body to the brain. You may be able to spot some of those feelings in these poems. We are sharing those poems, written early in her life and stored away, not shared but kept as a reminder to bring up her children differently than her mother did her. Some of the poems may have been lost over the years and some of them may have purposely lost. They were at one time in a binder but now individual sheets. I too wrote poems when a teenager. I was inspired by my English teacher. Not connecting directly to my mother's poems, I had no idea that we lived similar lives in this respect but she did; she encouraged me to write them. For larger text, click on the poem.

Graveside services

I do this as if mother will read it, even though I know better. She was laid to rest next to my dad with a shared headstone in a little cemetery outside of Glen Rose next to the golf course.

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books Family put a few things in the casket just to express their love one more time. We added petals from her rose garden to rest beside her body. Her garden was at its peak at the Clairmont while she was in the hospital and that garden was one thing she really loved.