A Tribute to My Cousin

Last year about this time we traveled to New England. The purpose was to celebrate the life of my oldest cousin. She suddenly passed away the year before following surgery after a cancer diagnosis. It was all very unexpected. We were looking forward to resuming visits - aside from the zoom calls she scheduled once a month - once the pandemic subsided. That never happened. Since there wasn’t a funeral the family decided a get together would be in order. After the event everyone was given a plant - the kind she liked to have growing in her home. It was a sweet gesture. The plant survived the trip home and was transplanted in to a little container where it joined the other greenery above the TV. At the time I also made a photo keepsake of the plant and the person it represented. Every time I look at it I think of Judi. She was always so positive and encouraged all of the cousins and was proud of all of the accomplishments. And she was especially kind to my parents. Now it’s been a year since we got Judi’s plant and it has done well. It’s been a year now - another reminder to celebrate her life. 

Cousin Memorial in New England

Last year we heard that our oldest cousin unexpectedly passed away after dealing with a new cancer diagnosis. She has just started chemotherapy and apparently died from a pulmonary embolism at home. I had just spoken to her at great length the day before. It was quite a shock. At the time there was no mention of funeral arrangements due to Covid. After a while it was determined that a get together memorial this summer would be nice. In the mean time, her husband, daughter and grand daughter set up a fund at Tufts University where she attended college. Two weeks ago we took a road trip to New England. Another cousin had called and asked if we would like to stay in her inherited family’s side by side home that she has since renovated and rents - she happened to be in between renters on one side. So we agreed and were happy to be on our way. We hadn’t been out of the state for three years and were anxious to get back to a routine of sorts even thought the reason for the travel was not exactly a happy one. But at least we would have the opportunity to see some familiar faces. We hadn’t been to New England since my parents surprise fiftieth wedding anniversary in 1998 - which happened to be at my cousin’s house. She was my mom’s flower girl. We had a lovely time visiting with everyone at the memorial “picnic.” On the way out we were given a plant in Judi’s memory. It now sits above the tv along with the other plants. Now I’ll think of her even more every time I look at it. 

A Memorial to my Cousin

My oldest cousin passed away very unexpectedly a year ago. I always admired her. She was the oldest out of sixteen cousins in our family. We moved away from New England when I was in second grade so we didn’t grow up together. But she stayed in touch with my mom to the end. They moved to Miami briefly and visited us with their newborn daughter. I was in high school at the time. Over the years we would meet up. She visited us in the Midwest and was the first family member to meet my husband. We drove to Chicago to say hi to her and her husband when they were in town. We saw them whenever we visited Boston. We planned my mom and dad’s surprise fiftieth wedding anniversary party at her house. She even had a wedding cake made that looked like the original. They came to visit us on Capitol Hill. She visited my mom and dad whenever they were in Florida and sent my mom scratch offs and chow mein noodles only found in the old hometown. She came to my mom’s funeral. She was the first to head off to college. She majored in biology at Northeastern University, genetics at Tufts, and an MBA at Boston University. She loved to travel. Her husband recently set up a memorial fund at Tufts University in her name. So my husband and I made a donation in her honor. She had a wonderful life. I’m so glad I knew her, but I also miss her. 

A Tribute to My Cousin

I’ve always had a high regard for our first cousin - because she was the FIRST cousin out of sixteen on my mom’s side. She was the flower girl in my mom’s youngest sister’s wedding. I must have been about three years old. Although we moved away from New England when I was six, somehow she remained a role model of sorts. And she looked so stylish when she went off to college at Northeastern and Tufts - majoring in biology and genetics when that wasn’t a common path back then. When they had their first and only baby they drove up for a visit. She was the first family member to meet my husband. We met her and her husband in Chicago. We saw her at family events - weddings. She helped me plan my mom and dad’s surprise 50th wedding anniversary. She was the go to person for all family related questions and the city where we all came from. She stopped in for a visit when we lived in DC. She was always so kind to my mom in the later years - calling her, sending cards and presents. The last time we met in person was at my mom’s funeral over two years ago. Then the pandemic came and she started the couzin zoom monthly gatherings. Then she said she needed to have a CT scan, then surgery, then chemotherapy. A week ago today she passed away unexpectedly at home - perhaps from a pulmonary embolism. I had just received an email from her that afternoon. I’m so glad we had a change to chat last month - the longest ever. She didn’t want to talk about her illness. We are all in shock that she is gone. I suppose nothing should be a shock these days. So I just want to pay tribute to her wonderful life and we are so sorry that she is gone.