Time, hey. It's quite a thing.
It's been two years since my mom passed away... and it's also Mother's Day. I'll be driving back from Afrikaburn (hopefully), so this is pre-prepared.
This was the eulogy prepared by my brother which was really just so beautiful and perfect.
It's all a lot. Love anyway. <3
~~~~
We are very fortunate.
I say this because we live in an age where we can take photos at anytime..
When I looked at the photos of Mae on my phone, the photo frames at Anita’s house, the photos in our program and in the video in the church today - I, for one, am grateful that we have so many memories captured in time.
Looking at these beautiful photos and amazing life, I wondered where do I even start?
Perhaps we start in the beginning
She was a daughter.
A caring daughter who helped her mom as they went from one end of the world to the other. Always by her side, helping her and the family.
She was a sister.
The oldest sister of 11 children.
She was so caring and important as a big sister, that they viewed her as a “2nd mom”. Even calling her ” sister” rather than her name as a sign of respect.
Then, while belonging to this core family, she started a family of her own.
She was a loyal wife who went through thick and thin. Sticking to my dad;s side through sickness and health.
Then she was a mother, the best mother one could have.
Nothing was too much for Mae. Ensuring we had the best with the little we had.
Then, would you believe it, she became an ouma.
Just like with her brothers and sisters, her children and her new daughter in law - she loved every bit of her 2 grand children.
On top of all this:
She was a friend.
Many times total strangers would come up to us and then they would turn out to be friend’s with Mae. Just like her family, these friends were shown respect and love.
She was an absolute sports fan.
Any sport, any time, she would watch it and have something to say. Everything I know about tennis, cricket and football actually came from watching games with her.
Then, most importantly, she was a true disciple of God.
Not only committed to going to church every Sunday but spreading the word of God as she lived her life.
When going to church became difficult, she continued spreading the Word and Love wherever she was.
She had the knack to take the words of God and translate it in a way that would help the person she was talking to.
But back to the photos.
I could talk for days about her character and the impact she had in our lives.
In the photos, what I see, and what I would like you to see, is the Love she had for all of us.
She was Love.
But its not just about the words “I love you”, its about her actions:
Making sure you are okay.
Making sure you were safe.
Making sure you were fed.
Nothing was ever a problem for her.
It was even how she greeted you:
“Hello Sweetie”
“Hallo Querida”
And like she Loved us, God Loved her.
She was very peaceful in her last days, surrounded by God’s Love. That in turn, surround me with peace and being grateful for the time we had.
I heard someone said “she was one of a kind”
And yes, she was.
Thank you Mae for everything.
We love you.
Fala ‘tra vez.
