I spent the morning at a memorial for my friend Helen today. The first hour and half in a Catholic church and the latter part of the day at a potluck. I've shed a few tears remembering her today and over the past week since she passed away. She is truly one of those people that will live on in the hearts of many. Which makes her death less sad somehow. I'm not a believer in the after-life and all that heavenly stuff, but there's something eternal about Helen. She was one of those rare people that gave her love without expectation. Whenever I saw her she would stop whatever she was doing and give me a hug. She always asked me about my children with genuine interest. In fact, if I ever tried to gripe or gossip about anything, she would gently steer the conversation toward happier and gentler things. She never raised her voice, even if someone wasn't listening to her. If she was committed to what she had to say, she just kept on quietly until people started to listen.
There was a slideshow of her at the potluck. I stood with different friends looking at Helen in all the different phases of her life: her wedding day, school, Africa with the Peace Corps, at work, with family and friends at her home and in nature. She had the same easy smile in every photograph. She was a beautiful woman.
I'm a better person for knowing her, though I won't miss her because she gave a small part of herself to me to keep forever.
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