I met Chris' Aunt Renee in a restaurant in Lake Geneva the year before Chris and I got married...so roughly 11 years ago. She was a well dressed women who had definite opinions about definite things--even the broasted chicken that we were eating...and yes it was broasted -because that is why we were at this particular restaurant...she liked the broasted chicken. I remember going back to their very well decorated house and she showed me the many antiques that she had collected over time. Fast forward 11+ years--family weddings, funerals, reunions mixed in those years and unfortunately I can't say that I had many more conversations with Renee...at our most recent family reunion she was suffering from Alzheimer's disease and did not engage in lots of conversations.
This weekend at Renee's memorial many of her friends and family stood to tell stories of the Renee they remembered...she was an accomplished dancer, singer, cook the list goes on and the stories were wonderful. Her husband Jim (my mother-in-law's brother) stood and told of their courtship and the many years they shared after she finally agreed to marry him. So sweet and endearing to see a man who had seen his wife go from the beautiful girl above to a little lady with gray hair and still be so in love. There is a part in the movie, "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium" where Natalie Portman describes someone as a "just guy"...she goes on to say that a "just guy" looks at things, people and sees just that....just a flower, just a store....they don't see all that is behind just what it is. Much like looking at people...they are so much more than just an old lady, just an old man, etc., etc. Renee's life story is such a reminder to not judge a book by it's cover--there could be and probably is so much more to the story, but sometimes you have to take the time to get through those first tough chapters before you find or understand more about what/who you have just read. Godspeed Renee.
