A Goodbye

About a month ago my Grandpa's brother (my great uncle) passed away after a ten year battle with cancer (a slow growing cancer). My Uncle and I had a special relationship, we both went to Elmhurst College and he made it possible for me to live on campus while I was an undergrad. He would come and visit every year for homecoming and he surprised me at graduation by not only coming, but he was a speaker up on stage (and gave me a shout out ) he tried to get the then president of the college to let him hand me my diploma but alas he couldn't, but he was next in line to give me a big hug.

Him and my Aunt led a very exciting life, traveled all over the world and he was just such an interesting person to know and to talk to, he was so kind and generous. He will be missed much.

So today my Aunt and her two of her kids (my uncle never had any kids with her, she already had 5 when they got married) came out so we could spread his ashes over my great-grandparents graves as he wished. We had a nice lunch together and then headed over to the cemetery. I had never been to this cemetery so it was the first time I saw all the family graves on my grandpa's side, and it was kinda cool to see them all together, all these people I always hear stories about. I only new two of the people buried there personally (my great-grandma died in '84 when I was 3, and my grandpa's cousin who passed away in '95).

So we read a bible verse and then started spreading ashes, at which point Logan wanted to participate and we said no, but my Aunt said that is was fine, so Logan spread some "sand" and then went over to Matt who was wearing his black work pants since he had to go into work when we were done and gave him about 3 nice big hand prints on those black pants....we all had a good laugh about that one. Then we had a "circle" a tradition in my Uncle and Aunts family at major events where you sit around in a circle and tell stories about the person who's big day it is. So we got to hear some new stories about my uncle. All in all it was a beautiful good bye to a remarkable man. I am forever grateful for the gift he and my aunt gave me, Elmhurst was very near and dear to his heart and mine. We already have the Blume board room at the college, and I hope his legacy is remembered in the same wonderful way his family remembers him.