I found out yesterday that my Aunt Lad died. She was in her eighties and had suffered with leukemia and she had a heart attack because of the stress of her disease. My whole family is very sad. Aunt Lad was a fun, funny, energetic and delightful woman who was the "glue" who held our extended family together. No matter how far we roamed, or how much our lives changed over the years, we could always call Aunt Lad and get all the news about everyone.
My Aunt Lad was perhaps the best card player I ever "seen or heard of". She loved to play cards and often had a game going with someone. She rarely went a day without a game, or three or four, of cards. She also made beautiful quilts and was very generous with giving them away. We all have wonderful Laddie stories, and I'm looking forward to hearing more of them.
She lived in Hastings, Minnesota, and I am going there tomorrow to attend her funeral. My mother is very sad, and said that Laddie and she were like twins while they were growing up. Being part of a family with nine children, meant that the kids paired up and helped each other as they grew up. When I called my mother to tell her the sad news yesterday, she said that she had just had a long telephone conversation with Laddie that day, and they were both happy and laughing. God works in miraculous ways.
I am not stretching it to say that Lad was everyone's favorite person. We all love each other, but Lad was really a special person to everyone who knew her. She was the only person I know who went to clown school when she was in her sixties so that she could entertain at nursing homes and local events. She was funny and although I never saw her in a clown suit, I sure remember a lot of clowning around. She was great at practical jokes and would go a long way out of her way to make others laugh. People like that are very rare.
We are all sad and I am also busy getting the arrangements made so I can go to Minneapolis very early tomorrow morning. Like my mother said, "You HAVE to go!". We just all feel that if we can walk and have a credit card, we have to be there for Laddie. She was always there for us.
Have a good day.
