Aunt Joan

I had some sad news today, my Aunt Joan passed away. Aunt Joan was my maternal grandmother's younger sister. She lived in the town my mom grew up in, Somerset, Massachusetts. I loved the street where she lived. It was a dead end and I think I was related to almost everyone who lived there at one point. When I was younger, I spent many summer days in Somerset swimming at my Uncle's pool and of my mom's three children, I am the closest to her side of the family. I'm not sure why. I'm assuming my brother isn't as close because by the time he was born, my sister and I were older and we just didn't have the time to go to Somerset as often as we used to. My sister? Maybe it's because she didn't like spending time away from home, so the weekends I would spend in Somerset sans parents, she would stay home. I loved going and I loved spending time there.

Aunt Joan was a teacher and when I was kid, there was nothing I loved more than school, books, and reading. She was always interested in my education and what books I was reading and she always had recommendations. When we were younger, she would give us Christmas gifts - books of course. So my heart hurt when my mom called me this evening to tell me she passed away. I haven't seen her in a few years - at another funeral, as it would happen, but she always took the time to ask me about where I was and what I was up to. Thank you Aunt Joan for fostering my love of education and for indulging my love of books. You were a kind, gentle woman, a devoted teacher, and an amazing Aunt. May you rest in peace.