My very first sleep-over was at my Aunt Peggy's house. The details are more than a little fuzzy seeing as I was only five years old at the time, but I do remember that she made me meals like my mommy did, taught me how to play Connect Four, and let me watch Mommie Dearest (a movie that scared the bejezzus out of me, but I would never admit it). We had just finished watching Faye Dunaway beat her daughter with clothes hangers, and her eyes had a devilish glint as she she turned to ask me which one of my parents was the most like Joan Crawford. Too young and naive to realize I could diplomatically laugh the question away, I promptly answered "my dad because he's the one who spanks me." She giggled all the way to the telephone. After telling her brother what his sweetheart of a daughter said about him, she managed to convince him to let me stay one more night. Two nights turned into three, which turned into a week because I was having too much fun to leave.
I remember swimming in the pool at Hide-A-Way Hills and seeing Peg in her bathing suit. Curious, I asked my mom about the funny skin on her hip and on her knee. That was the moment when I learned what cancer was. That was also the moment when I learned who my Aunt was. Along with explaining her illness, my mom also told me that Peggy had been pregnant when she was diagnosed. Although it was terribly dangerous to do so, she waited until Kathryn was born before starting chemotherapy because she valued the life of her unborn baby more than her own.
Like me, she also loved to read. I remember later sleep-overs when I would take time out from playing with my cousins so that she and I could sit together in front of her bookshelf. She would pull several books down, give me a synopsis of each, and let me pick one to borrow. I'm sorry, Peg, I never did give you Thinner back, did I? I really liked it by the way, and you were right - that scene when the guy slips a penny under his alligator scales was terrifically and awesomely disgusting. You and I were always people who could appreciate such things.
One of my all-time favorite pictures is of her. We were dancing at Amanda's wedding when that Kanye West song came on. Smiling and acting the fool, Peg flashed a gang symbol that my very white, very suburban brother had taught her. I love that picture of you, Peg. I've since framed it, and grin every single time I see it.
Never one to wallow, she asked that we throw a party after her funeral. Of course we will miss her, but there will also be plenty of laughter as we celebrate her with one story leading into another and yet another - stories that honor her optimism, her humor, her fire, and her wit.
And out off all of us, she always looked the most like my grandmother. Of all the birds, they both loved cardinals most. And you know what, Peg? This morning a cardinal swooped down in front of my car as I drove into work. I thought of you both (as I always do when I see a red bird) and smiled a smile that lasted me all day long.
I remember swimming in the pool at Hide-A-Way Hills and seeing Peg in her bathing suit. Curious, I asked my mom about the funny skin on her hip and on her knee. That was the moment when I learned what cancer was. That was also the moment when I learned who my Aunt was. Along with explaining her illness, my mom also told me that Peggy had been pregnant when she was diagnosed. Although it was terribly dangerous to do so, she waited until Kathryn was born before starting chemotherapy because she valued the life of her unborn baby more than her own.
Like me, she also loved to read. I remember later sleep-overs when I would take time out from playing with my cousins so that she and I could sit together in front of her bookshelf. She would pull several books down, give me a synopsis of each, and let me pick one to borrow. I'm sorry, Peg, I never did give you Thinner back, did I? I really liked it by the way, and you were right - that scene when the guy slips a penny under his alligator scales was terrifically and awesomely disgusting. You and I were always people who could appreciate such things.
One of my all-time favorite pictures is of her. We were dancing at Amanda's wedding when that Kanye West song came on. Smiling and acting the fool, Peg flashed a gang symbol that my very white, very suburban brother had taught her. I love that picture of you, Peg. I've since framed it, and grin every single time I see it.
Never one to wallow, she asked that we throw a party after her funeral. Of course we will miss her, but there will also be plenty of laughter as we celebrate her with one story leading into another and yet another - stories that honor her optimism, her humor, her fire, and her wit.
And out off all of us, she always looked the most like my grandmother. Of all the birds, they both loved cardinals most. And you know what, Peg? This morning a cardinal swooped down in front of my car as I drove into work. I thought of you both (as I always do when I see a red bird) and smiled a smile that lasted me all day long.
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