Grief… It’s Hard

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Hello farmgirl friends!

This is a hard post for me to write, but somehow I think it will be a post that we can all relate to… and encourage each other in.

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Ten days ago, I lost a very dear friend of mine to a tragic car accident.  Death is something that we are never prepared for; but when it comes so suddenly in a sobbing phone call from her daughter, Sarah, then it is almost impossible to grasp.  Today I’d like to tell you about my friend Patti.

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Patti had a BIG HEART  

There was absolutely NO ONE she did not love.  And I mean that with every fiber of my being.  It did not matter what your status in life was, or who you were.  She loved you.  She never judged anyone by the situation they were in or decisions they had made (good or bad); she just loved you.

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Patti knew the POWER OF LOVE

Her father died when she was six and her mother wasn’t very present in her life.  Patti told us once that she never heard the words “I love you” until she was an adult.  I think that might be why she loved so deeply.  She knew firsthand the power of love.

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Patti loved ADVENTURE

She was an incredibly adventurous lady!  We called her an “old hippie” (she really was!!) and she was absolutely game for anything, even spur of the moment.  And I loved that about her.  If there was a friend in need, she would jump in her car and drive to them.  It didn’t matter if it was hundreds of miles away.  If you called and wanted to go kayaking, she was immediately game!  It didn’t matter the adventure; she was all in for it!

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Patti knew HOW TO BE A FRIEND

She had friends all over the world.   And I mean that with all seriousness.  She impacted lives far and wide.  When you were Patti’s friend you were guaranteed a friend for life.

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Patti PRAYED

She truly knew the struggles of the heart of all mankind and there was no one she didn’t remember in prayer.  She cherished the time she spent praying.

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Patti LOVED ANIMALS

She never went anywhere without her sweet dog. (He survived the car accident and after some trauma, he is now doing well with Patti’s husband Keith!)  Her daughter and son in law have goats and sheep and Patti loved the babies; she would stay up all night caring for a little lamb or kid in need.  I had a text from her daughter yesterday and she was telling me about a Ewe sheep that is sick right now and she said, “What’s hard is that if Mom was alive she would be here sleeping in the barn and never letting this Ewe out of her sight”.  And Patti would’ve; that was how she was.

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Patti was FUNNY

I was one of the lucky ones that lived 20 minutes from her.  So I saw her twice a week on average.  Her joyous laughter was a constant in my life.  We could laugh until our sides hurt.  It’s not often that you find someone that you can laugh with to that degree!  She could laugh at herself like not one I’ve ever known before!  The stories we all share of her funny experiences are ones that I cherish so much.

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Patti was an ENCOURAGER

It didn’t matter if everything was falling apart, she had the right words to encourage.  My daughter told me that she plans to write down all the texts that Patti sent her… they were always encouraging, always loving, always cheerful.

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Patti was a CHILD AT HEART

She didn’t have grand-children yet and she loved mine as if they were hers too.  Often when she was driving by my daughters house on the way to see her daughter, she would stop and see the girls.  It was not uncommon for her to jump in the pool with them in all her clothes! They considered her their best friend; and she was.

 

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I miss her.  Every day in the 10 days that she has been gone, I’ve picked up my phone to call her to tell her something funny or to see what she’s doing.  And then I remember she is gone.  And I want to call her and tell her how desperately I miss her.  And that I don’t think I’ll ever be the same without her.  But then I hear her saying to me; “Dori, you will be fine.  Trust me.”  And I do.

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Thank you friends, for always listening to the thoughts in my heart!

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Until our gravel roads cross again… so long.

Dori