Loss of an old friend

Today was a sad, yet exciting day as we learned of the passing of an old friend, Stella Whitehouse, on Tuesday, Feb 1. Stella was 91, and has been looking forward to the day she can meet her Lord and Savior in person. Now she has. Last summer we were informed that Stella had less than 24 hours to live, so we rushed over to the hospital to say our goodbyes. What did we find? Not what one would expect of a "dying" person to be sure! She was sitting up in bed, as excited as we have ever seen her at the prospect of finally meeting Jesus. With this attitude it is hard to mourn her passing, even though we may miss her. We had an enjoyable hour or maybe two reminiscing about various memories.  Stella had been dealing with a form of Leukemia for perhaps 20 years, and was no longer producing red blood cells. Supposedly, the only thing keeping her alive was blood transfusions and she had told the doctors that she wanted no more of those. Of course, the 24 hours went by with her still alive, then she improved to the point that she was released from the hospital and went home. The old New Englanders just do not die easily!

Who was Stella? For many years she had been the head secretary of the Plant Science Department. I was not in that department, but when I joined the University of New Hampshire faculty I was informed that if I wanted anything from that department I would have to go through Stella! Not really true, but that was her reputation. If she had been a man she may have been considered a curmudgeon, but that is not really a fair description. A curmudgeon is usually thought of as an ill-tempered (and frequently old) person full of stubborn ideas or opinions. Stella was not ill tempered, but she did not easily suffer foolishness. Her stubborn side was not misplaced because it was based on correctness - some based on years as a secretary and some from being a long time New Englander. She was never reluctant to correct someone who was in the wrong, be it with manners or grammer. I was once chastised for not removing my hat upon entering a building, and I am sure I was no the only one ever receiving this chastisement. Misquote a bible verse and you would usually be corrected and be given the reference if you needed it. Mispronounce a word and it would be corrected. Misuse the English grammar and you would be corrected. It could sometimes be irritating, but mainly because you knew you were wrong and just didn't like being corrected. One of our mutual friends had a rather serious stroke, almost dying. He has had a long road back, but his brain generally works fine - he just cannot easily get his thoughts into words. Interestingly, in her presence he only needed to speak a few words and she could usually finish his sentence.

Goodbye Stella. Many will miss you, but mourn your departure we cannot do. We can celebrate your homecoming with you, though. Enjoy yourself and bask in the glow of the Lord's presence. We will meet again by and by, and you can continue to correct our grammar for eternity!