As we age, we realise that the people that know us the best, those who have taken the entire journey with us, are the ones that have help us shape the way we view the world.
As we mature, we realise that death is an inescapable byproduct of life.
When I was a child, I looked at death as something to be feared. It brought terrible emotional pain. It was black and cold and final.
On Friday morning, January 31, 2014, my lovely, vivacious, generous, selfless, hysterically funny, uncensored, Aunt Leigh suddenly passed away. She was diagnosed earlier this month with an aggressive form of brain cancer.
It took her in less than three weeks.
I am still not comprehending.
I am sad in a way that I haven't experienced before. I'm trying very hard not to be angry because I don't think she would like that. Part of me rages at how horribly unfair cancer can be.
She did not suffer, though, and today, in a quiet epiphany, I came to the realisation that I had been viewing this situation from the wrong angle. My Aunt's death was painless and lightning fast. She had her family with her when she left us. It seems fitting then, that death was kind to her, a woman who spent her life devoted to those who were lucky enough to share her orbit.
Good bye Aunt Leigh. xo
