2013 I lost:
- My first brother-in-law Dan. I always felt like he and I grew up together. I was 19 when I met his brother Gene; Dan was 18. Both of us just kids. For the first couple years of my marriage, he was at our place so much that it was if he was living with us - we even asked him to pay for food. After Gene died and I remarried, I didn't see much of Dan until my son Will moved back to L.A. Dan was then in and out of Will's life for several years. I don't even remember the last time I saw him. His mental and physical health went into a severe decline and he ended up in a nursing home. His death left a small empty feeling inside of me. I started to realize that I was losing the people who knew me when I was young; first Gene and then Dan.
- My brother-in-law Ray. Sad because I had just met him. He lived in Windsor, Ontario and we lived in L.A. He never came to L.A. and we never went to Windsor. Last June he finally came to California along with Gerry (Dennis' younger brother) and their cousins Juanita and Cheryl to visit my sister-in-laws Pat and Joan in Windsor, CA. So we drove up and to see everyone. Dennis hadn't seen Juanita or Ray in over 25 years and had never met Cheryl (Juanita's daughter). We had a wonderful time and it was so good for Dennis to re-connect with his family. We promised to visit Windsor, Ontario in 2014 and will be traveling there in May. However, Ray passed away in October.
- Our friend Harry. Harry was 95. He hired Dennis in 2010 to drive him to his "work." Harry was a very active 95. He volunteered 5 days a week at a couple of different places. His favorite one was reading to grade school kids. Harry made us feel like family. For the first year, he included us in dinners with his son and daughter-in-law, we spent New Year's Eve 2011 with them and in August of 2011 we moved in with him as his family didn't want him living alone. We came to view Harry like a father and we were, according to him, part of his family. He opened his home to our kids and grand kids. For many reasons, we moved back to our apartment in Oct. 2012 but Harry still treated us like family. Dinners, Thanksgiving, plays, etc. The last time I saw him was on October 31, 2013 when I dropped by so he could see our granddaughter Kaylee in her costume. He died on the following Sunday. It felt like my parents had died again.
- And the one that hit me the hardest was Don. Don, Gene's best friend. Don, who got me through Gene's illness and death. Don who for so many reasons, left San Diego and moved to Portland, OR. I lost touch with Don, I tried for the first few years to reach out to him. But for some reason he never reached out to me. Every so often, I'd google him because he was an artist and I knew he was showing in a gallery in Oregon. So I would see some of his work but never spoke to him. I thought of him often. And then he died in 2013. I didn't find out until this year. His big painting Parade hangs on my living room wall. Two smaller ones have been on my office walls. Now a third person who knew me way back when - I met him when I was 19 has left me. The empty feeling in my heart has gotten bigger.
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