Sad, sad news....

I got an E-Mail from Janie today regarding my birthday and she asked me who the person was that had sent a regret that they couldn't come. I read the note that she, Linda Entel had written the reason that her Mother couldn't come was because she had dementia very bad!!! Her Mother is my cousin June Crithfield, who is not only my older cousin, (we always joked about that! She was born in Dec. 1918 and I was born in Feb. 1919!) It was with regrets that Linda had written and said that she could not bring her Mother because she, Linda, had been undergoing all kinds of back trouble for three or four years! June and her sisters, Nadine and Betty, were the daughters of my Uncle Lance and Aunt Gladys. Uncle Lance and my Father were always close and so we, June and I, had the chance to spend most of our childhood years together! Mother and Aunt Gladys were really good friends too! Nadine died several years ago of cancer and Betty, after many years of being practically bed-ridden, developed Alzhiemers Disease and was put into a home in Clarkston near June. June was the one who practically took care of Betty till she passed away! Betty had two sons and they lived in Pullman and had families and so June was the ONE left to care for Betty. She visited her almost every day at the Care Center and literally watched her pass away. June had a great feeling about family history and went on several trips to find out all she could about the geneology of the family! This helped immensely to my Brother Joe's wife Jean, who has taken time ( and I do mean years!) to try and come up with the geneology of the Rabideau, (my Mother) and Batty, (my Father) families. She came down the other day with a huge album of birth certificats, Baptismal certificates, etc., etc., about the families. (Anyone wanting to find out about the Farnsworth, Rabideau, Batty family is welcome to come and have copies made of the family going back to the Civil War and beyond!!!) Getting back to June, I feel so sad that we are getting to "that" age when things are no longer remembered! My Mother passed away in her 99th year and Dad was 83 when he passed away! Mother was very mentally alert and knowing even at 99 but Dad was put into a Hospital and had dementia at 83! He did not last very long, thank God, in the Hospital!!!! I HOPE that I take after my Mother mentally and I think I do! I try to keep busy, that is, I try to keep my mind busy with things that keep me thinking that I'm younger than I am! June was a gardener too, and loved the outdoors! I don't have a "green thumb" and gardening is something that I feel I "have" to do if I want to have a few flowers around!!!! I'll pray for you June, and hope that you continue to be the happy person you always were! I love you!!!