Sometimes home calls. The calls don’t always come for the kindest of reasons, but these are hardest to ignore. I left Denver on a red eye last weekend for a trip back to Philadelphia. My Aunt, only 41 years old, had passed away. Brain Cancer took her too soon–leaving behind my 3 young cousins (all in grade school) and a grieving husband. I couldn’t imagine not being there with my family during this time. I feel lucky to have the means and the time to take. I feel lucky to have spent the week with the people who have been so formative in who I am today. I feel blessed for the love my family shares.It was a week of ups and downs.
A beautiful memorial service, absolutely overflowing with loved ones and memories of my dear “Auntie”, as I jokingly called her. She was boisterous and mischevious. You could not sit in a room with her and NOT laugh. Her personality wouldn’t allow it. She was kind and generous with her time and her talents. Her creative nature yielded murals, paintings, drawings and many an impromptu art lesson. She will be missed, but I try to remember how you couldn’t stop laughing when you were with her. How she’d want us to feel now. To carry on and find things to laugh at, even in the face of such hurt. I miss her. I grieve for her children. But I laugh thinking of the moments we had together. It almost doesn’t seem real.
Before I left Denver (a week ago today actually) I visited the Denver Art Museum’s temporary exhibit “Embrace!”, where 17 artists created pieces specifically for the unusual architecture. “Chamber”, a video installation by Charles Sandison really resonated with me. A vast room is filled with projections of words, symbols and phrases, moving across the angled walls and ceilings in a mesmerizing constellation. It was beautiful and soothing. I felt like the feelings I have about my Aunts death had been removed from my head and taken life. Like they had become part of a vast world of frustrations, pains, joy and the confusions of life that everyone experiences. I felt as if I could sit and watch the flowing characters all day. They gave me a sense of peace. Below is an image of the piece.
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