Wee - Another funeral, coming right up!
Mrs. Doucha's mom, Mata (Joan), passed away yesterday at 5pm. She has been sick for a long time, on and off, and has lost so much weight. She was really beginning to lose her mental faculties over the past few months to a year as well. Apparently it got really bad this week. Mrs. Doucha sent me an email on Tuesday saying that her mom's 90th birthday was Thursday... and that she hoped for her to pass away on the day she was born. It happened just one day early. She clearly sensed it though. Knew it was coming... almost as she did with Pata and Roger.
Mata was so much like Suzi... sweet, warm, caring, smart. I didn't know her tremendously well, but did spend some treasured moments with her over the past several years. I remember when I helped her and Hy move into Lakeridge many years ago... she paid me $6/hr. I obviously didn't do it for money - it was so great to be around them. They had amazing stories to tell but were also phenomenal listeners. They wrote several books, too... they were huge environmental conservationists/activists. When they moved to Miami, they wrote a book on the Nature of Dade County, lots of stuff about the Everglades. They also wrote Albequerque's Environmental Story when they lived in New Mexico. They were honored by members of government in both New Mexico and Miami-Dade. They also founded some sort of institute, The Joan & Hy Rosner Environmental Education Campus at La Semilla. I don't know what that means, but it sounds important. Thanks to Google, I found that "La Semilla is a 2,800 acre nature reserve and environmental education center. Located on state trust land at the foot of the Sandia Mountains, La Semilla is on the eastern border of Mesa del Sol, the Master Planned Community, in Albuquerque." One word: Wow.
Suzi spent 2 hours making the early arrangements at the funeral home today. I joked with her that she should become a professional funeral planner -- though that's obviously really sad. I could just tell in her voice, though, that she was like, "well, here we go again." The service won't be for another month or so... I am sure she will solicit me to play flute or something.
Death is really a silly part of life. I honestly don't know what else to say.
Mata was so much like Suzi... sweet, warm, caring, smart. I didn't know her tremendously well, but did spend some treasured moments with her over the past several years. I remember when I helped her and Hy move into Lakeridge many years ago... she paid me $6/hr. I obviously didn't do it for money - it was so great to be around them. They had amazing stories to tell but were also phenomenal listeners. They wrote several books, too... they were huge environmental conservationists/activists. When they moved to Miami, they wrote a book on the Nature of Dade County, lots of stuff about the Everglades. They also wrote Albequerque's Environmental Story when they lived in New Mexico. They were honored by members of government in both New Mexico and Miami-Dade. They also founded some sort of institute, The Joan & Hy Rosner Environmental Education Campus at La Semilla. I don't know what that means, but it sounds important. Thanks to Google, I found that "La Semilla is a 2,800 acre nature reserve and environmental education center. Located on state trust land at the foot of the Sandia Mountains, La Semilla is on the eastern border of Mesa del Sol, the Master Planned Community, in Albuquerque." One word: Wow.
Suzi spent 2 hours making the early arrangements at the funeral home today. I joked with her that she should become a professional funeral planner -- though that's obviously really sad. I could just tell in her voice, though, that she was like, "well, here we go again." The service won't be for another month or so... I am sure she will solicit me to play flute or something.
Death is really a silly part of life. I honestly don't know what else to say.