Love the Ones You're With

Last week my cousin Heather passed away suddenly. She was 35 years old. She has a daughter that is 12. She had finally found the love of her life, and they had been married for three years. I did not know my cousin well. It's a long story, but I hadn't seen her in years. When I heard the news, I knew I wanted to be there at the funeral service. I felt like I had lost the opportunity to have a relationship with someone I should have been close to, and I didn't want to continue on that path. I wanted to be there for Uncle Marvin and Aunt Mary Ann (her parents), and my cousin Corey (her brother). Each of my siblings came to the same conclusion on their own, and we all came. I think we also felt Grandma's presence telling us that that is where we should be. Not only did Grandma love Heather so much, but she always wanted us to be together. I am so glad I went. The service was beautiful. The church was packed. Family members shared their thoughts and memories, and then they invited anyone who wanted to come up and share something about her. She was a very remarkable adult, and I wished that I had known her better. I got up and talked a little about Grandma, how she loved her, how Heather had inherited some of her personality from Grandma, that I'm certain (it was the first thing I thought when my sister told me she had died) that Grandma greeted her with great joy, and is with her now.
The other thing that was said many times at the service, and has been on my mind all week is to never forget to love the ones you're with. They might, as in Heather's case, be gone tomorrow. Hug your children, your spouse, your siblings, your parents, your Aunts and Uncles, cousins, Grandparents, dear friends. Make sure they know how much they mean to you. I'm going to reach out to those cousins I haven't seen in a very long time. I'm going to call my Aunt in Idaho and make a plan to go see her. I don't want to miss out on any more opportunities. I want all of you (everyone who reads this is either a family member, or dear friend) to know that I love you, and I cherish what each of you have brought to my life. So that is my thought this morning,

Love the ones you're with as much as you can, you never know what paths life will take.

~C