Signs From Above

A lot of people laugh when I tell them I absolutely LOVED my mother-in-law, Linda. I hear a lot of horrible mother-in-law stories, so I know that. I really hit the jackpot when it came to Linda.

She was the type of person who could always make you laugh. Not just normal heh heh, that's humorous-type laughing. The kind where you would have tears streaming down your face that's in pain from laughing so hard, where your stomach hurt and you thought you were gonna throw up, but wanted to keep laughing type of funny. She was a riot. The best part is that she made fun of you, her neighbor, herself, everyone. No one was safe from her ribbing. But it was all good. You could tell the difference between teasing because she really thought you were an idiot and teasing because she knew you could take it and she loved you regardless.

I very distinctly remember one trip she made to visit us from her home in Dallas. My son was either 2 or 3 at the time. I had a friend from Michigan who had just moved down to Tulsa with her two girls, so we all met at the zoo. We were getting on the train to ride to the back so we could walk to the front. We initially climbed into the last car, but decided to move up a couple of cars instead. As the train reached the final destination, there was a rumble, shaking and it suddenly stopped. We all looked at each other wondering what was going on. When we got off the train, we saw the last car had separated from the wheels. The car we almost rode in! Boy that sent us into a fit of laughter and we giggled about that train all the way to the front of the zoo. It also didn't help that we were moving slowly because it was hot, so we ended up still being there even after it closed and a helicopter was flying over us (I assume they were letting employees know people were still inside). The jokes we told about what the helicopter pilot was saying as we were walking just made us crack up all over again. We had a great time.

Linda definitely had her quirks. Dogs and trash cans would make her sick to her stomach. She told me the story of how she was going to try Raising Cane's for the first time, but when she pulled into the drive-thru, she didn't realize there was a dog as the mascot. As she waited for her food, she said she felt sicker and sicker while the dog stared at her and she finally drove away in disgust.

Anyone who knows Linda knows she had a mind of her own and she was not afraid to let you know. She had to grow up fast when she had her first child at 15. I can only imagine the bumps and bruises she got while raising a child as a child herself, but I would have to imagine that is how she got to be as tough and no-nonsense as she was. When her son (my husband) was young, his dad was killed. She was a 27-year-old woman with two children and was, once again, on her own. How scary, but if anyone could take a licking and keep on ticking, it was Linda.

Linda died suddenly on May 15, 2015. It is still a major blow that is hard to get over, but life must go on. She would have us do nothing less, especially for my two kids. I'm sad I only got to know her for a short 6 years of my life, but I know in just that period, she made a huge impact on my life. I have never met anyone so caring, giving, loving, funny and God-fearing in my life and I know I will never meet anyone like her again.

Since her death, I have noticed several things: I find pennies EVERYWHERE. I read that a penny means the person thinks you are highly valued (#1). I used to see a bunny every morning in our front yard, like it was watching me and the kids off to start our day. There always seems to be a fly buzzing around our house or in my cube at work and they always seem to land on me. One time, a fly landed on my arm and looked at me like it was asking what was I thinking. And then there's the song. Me and her loved ones were cleaning out her apartment one day when Wiz Khalifa's "See you Again" came on. Actually, it came on about 4 times. Usually when it came on the radio, I would burst into tears. It got to the point I couldn't listen to it anymore and would have to change the channel as soon as I heard Charlie Puth sing the hook. Not too long ago, I found myself thinking I hadn't heard the song in a while and it came on the radio. I teared up but I was able to smile through the tears. I knew she was near.

So to you, Linda: I love you and I miss you and we will definitely see each other again.

#death #family #love #humor #music #friends