Thanksgiving Holiday, Oral Haslem 2010

Thanksgiving took a far 2nd place to the passing away of my dear mother in law, Oral Haslem.  What a great woman.  Cambrie left California and was able to visit her grandma before she died.  Of course the frail, old and failing body was not what Grandma was for most of her life.  She was a wonderful mother who raised some great kids, including my wife.  When I was trying to court Marilyn, her mother was on my side even before Marilyn was!  She made anyone feel welcome in her home.  I told Marilyn a couple of years ago that going to the mountain was more fun when her parents were there.  Grandpa was always off doodling with something but Grandma would make the mountain fun.  A few weeks back when she was mostly mentally gone and sleeping through most visits, I asked her when we were going to go to the mountain again and she opened her eyes and started talking to me about the mountain.  She loved it.  I can't count the number of water fights I've been in with that woman and she was a fierce water fighter!  She usually was the first one to let the grandkids get her all wet. However, she gave as well as received.  She had the entire family over for dinner EVERY Sunday.  That was until we were too big of a family to fit around her kitchen table and card table at the end.  She was a classy woman and I never had the traditional "mother in law" relationship with her.  She would hug me and tell me how handsome I was (the big liar) and always told me how lucky they were to have me in their family.  I loved that woman.  She was smart too.  A school teacher for many years she had a sharp and witty mind.  It was hard the last couple of years to see her go downhill with the Alzheimers.   We are born, we live, and we die.  There's no part of that cycle that we can skip. Dying is something that is hard to watch a loved one go through.   Grandma had kids that loved her and took care of her through the most difficult part of the cycle.  Though we lost the real grandma a while back to her failing mind, seeing her body follow was hard, none the less. She lives on though in her values and teachings and her DNA in my sweetheart Marilyn who has cried a lot over these past several days.  May we all live to make Grandma proud.

Thanksgiving was a good time to have the kids and grandkids that were available to share time with.  We missed Buff, Steve, and Brigham & Nelsons but Cambrie & girls showed up the next day.  All 6 grandkids were running all over the house playing together which was enjoyable.  Brigham also was able to come yesterday to be with Marilyn and were a great comfort to her the day after her mother passed away.  Marilyn and I have an amazing, wonderful, and enjoyable family that never hesitates to show love and compassion.