Three Little French Girls

Once upon a time, in a town not so far from here, there were 3 little girls of about 6 years old. They each were the youngest in their families. They each had significant age differences between them and their siblings. They each were of French Canadian origins. They each went to the Catholic Church right there in the center of town. Their older siblings were friends with each other. None of them had young, trendy, "hippy" moms; their moms were the older crowd, the conservative crowd. As many things that they had in common, there were differences too..subtle, but there all the same. One Mom was busy and involved in town and in school, one preferred to be at home, while the third found her place in her love of music. At holiday fairs, and ham and bean suppers, the girls played together without fail. As they got older, there were sleepovers, then boyfriends, then proms and graduations. There was suntanning in the backyards, swimming in the pools, days at the beach. There were parties, and late nights, tears and laughs. Two of the three had a tighter bond in their 20s, they moved away from their hometown, and had a bunch of wild years together in a sunny place. Eventually, they both came home again, the third little French girl was married already, settled down into her life, one of the two came home pregnant, about to be a single mom, the other hadn't found her future yet. That baby was born, and welcomed into his grandparents home with all the love and care that could be bestowed on a child.

The Moms of the three little French girls were a huge part of their lives, of my life. Today, I mourn the loss of one of our Mothers. I was blessed to have known her, quirks and all (no perfume in her house..pots and pans to wake us up if we weren't moving fast enough..to name just a couple). I always felt "at home" in her home, you could always count on fresh baked bread when you walked in her kitchen, and more often than not, she would be eating something just a little too odd for us to try (sardines famously) too! She was an individual - followed the beat of her own drum, she loved her family, she loved her home. She was a devoutly religious woman, believed in miracles, and prayed for so many in her work with the prayer group at church. If there is a place in heaven for any of us, there is a place for her. She truly did "God's Work" here on Earth. I know she put in her fair share of good words for me and her daughter over the years. The poor woman has suffered with leukemia in the past few years, I am glad her pain is over, she endured more than a kind sould like hers should have. She will be missed.