This Mosaic Monday entry is being dedicated to two very special people, Paul and Elizabeth Phillips.
They were not blood relatives and yet, they were uncle Paul and Aunt Liz to me and my husbands family for many decades. They were two of the most caring people that I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. They encouraged me personally in many ways, including the love of my photography, as well as saying that my meals always turned out as though Martha Stewart herself had prepared them ;)
Uncle Paul had a stroke a few years ago and had to live in a facility not far from where he and Aunt Liz had recently moved. Aunt Liz would drive there a couple of times a day and stay with her life long mate all day, every day, making sure that his needs were taken care of.
They had one of those really sweet, tender, loving marriages.
Uncle Paul passed away in recent months and he will not soon be forgotten. He could no longer speak, but he could sing and that he did. At the facility, they knew this man with a sweet spirit, who could be heard singing to his new found friends up and down the corridors and he continued to love and be loved.
It was very difficult these past several months for Aunt Liz, but she was coping, she was doing what Uncle Paul would have desired. Last Wednesday afternoon Aunt Liz had gone to the market. Once she returned home, she stopped to gather up her mail and then pulled into her driveway. For some reason, she had gotten out of the car, maybe to toss some junk mail into the garbage can. In doing this, she had not put her car in park and she was tragically killed.
My heart aches at the loss. My spirit grieves that she was all alone after giving so much of her life to others and yet, I know what she would say to me...
It is all alright Mary, I am at peace, I am with Uncle Paul once again and I have seen Him face to face~
I shall always love you Uncle Paul and Aunt Liz. Thank you for your love, your faith in me and your caring for all of humanity~