Saturday, April 17, 2010

Lucy

Dear Lucy,

Where are you and what are you doing? Happy sixth Birthday! Does that even mean anything in your timeless world?

Your parents hosted a huge birthday party in your honor today. It was an indoor picnic in the 27th Ward building on P Street. It's the ward where your funeral was held. You wore a white dress that Grandma Sharon made, and your coffin was white, the size of a picnic basket. Are you still wearing that dress?

Many of your aunts, uncles and cousins, along with friends were there to remember you. I saw your youngest brother, Louis, his face smeared with frosting from eating one of the ladybug cupcakes. Elliot sat at the children's activity table where there were ladybug stickers and colored paper. We associate you with ladybugs. Lucy Ladybug. I think Pop-pop found that verse about Lucy Ladybug. We see ladybugs and we think of you.

The twelve-minute slide show of your life was mesmerizing and painful. Those short four months and your subsequent death, cracked our universe. You were courageous, Lucy. I think of you as determined--a fighter against all odds. Courageous.

After the slide show, your dad stood on the edge of the stage and held a ladybug pinata from the end of a rod while the kids swung at it with a bat until it split open and the candy fell onto the floor. One of your cousins used her skirt as a bag for the candy she picked up. In this world, we're all crazy about sugar. We ate sandwiches and potato salad and fruit too.

Later, we walked outside into the sunshine, crossed the street to the cemetery, to your grave site, which was decorated with flowers and little pots of pansies that your mother handed out as favors. Your parents opened up the packets of live ladybugs onto the marble bench with your name inscribed in it, and we gathered them onto our hands and let them crawl up and down our arms. One disappeared under my sleeve.

I'm missing you, Lucy. I'm missing you.

Love,

Grandma P.

P.S. Your Aunt Marcia stole ugly plastic salad spoons from the church.


13 comments:

Marcia said...

you sold me out. here i was getting all emotional again only to have you totally rat me out to the entire world. harsh.

Louise Plummer said...

irony, Marcia, irony.

Louise Plummer said...

Marcia, hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!

Marcia said...

http://antknit.blogspot.com/

All thievery aside, today was nice.

Diane... said...

Louise Plummer...I read your blog again (hope you don't mind?!) I check in periodically and this beloved post for your dear Lucy has motivated me to gather tomorrow with my sisters and folks to celebrate the life of our Debra. THANKS for your lovely thoughts and etc.....please don't go private, I'm a safe blog stocker :)

Jacqueline said...

Sending my love to all the Plummers. Please give Sarah a hug from me.

Kerri said...

I'm a lurker who loves you and your blog. That's all I have to say...

Oh, except this broke my heart and made me think family and ties that bind are the best things in the world.

Kristen said...

This was tender and sweet, and still light and fresh. Thanks for the reminder of how precious families are.

Sarah said...

OK, so I love how Marcia tried to pretend she had no say in the ugly-salad-utensils matter. She pulled them out of her bag and said, "Look what Louise did!" Ha! You are both equally guilty.

It was a great, long, sunny, perfect day. My deepest thanks to everyone who continues to keep her alive in their words to us, and their thoughts and actions. It means more than you will likely ever know.

Ann said...

Sending my love to Lucy, too.

Anonymous said...
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Lisa said...

Much love.

Katy said...

So sweet, Louise. Lucy is Sarah's baby? When I see a lady bug I'll think of Lucy and Sarah's example of strength.