Saying "Good-bye" to a friend of 25 years..........

I got the dreaded call tonight around 5:40. I have held my breath every time I answered my phone for the last two days waiting for it. It happened........My friend, Sheelagh, passed away tonight. We had met at work in 1982 and became quick friends. She was old enough to be my mom, and, sometimes tried to act like it. My mom used to keep her in line about that. lol Her only son is a year younger than me.

She had a very interesting life. Sheelagh was from Great Britain, was on the stage in London in a chorus, and came here as a war bride on the Queen Mary in 1946 with thousands of others. The stories she told were insightful as to how WW II was from a British civilian viewpoint. The bombs dropping, air raids, and tough conditions...........While she told them, we used to sit and knit together. I loved to watch her way of holding the needles. She held them on top of her hands instead of under. In her closet was a box full of baby items she had made over the years, but, never had a grandchild to use them. I know her family will give them away to others with loving memories of her.

When Patty, her daughter-in-law, told me she wouldn't make the summer, I went to see her with another friend, Diane. We both knew the end was nearer than Patty thought. I'm glad I got a chance to say my "silent goodbye" to her while she was still aware. Sheelagh didn't want us to see her at the end. We had to respect her wishes even though both of us wanted to sit with her for a while.

Now I say: "Goodbye my dear friend, until we meet someday in the distant future. I know my family and yours will greet you today when you get there.......Love, your old friend"