My Great Aunt Eleanor Dicks died a few weeks ago. I didn't know her. For most of my life she lived in Florida and I probably only met her half a dozen times, she was just a character in my Grandmother's stories.
It's strange when you can't relate to the people you are related to, but I found out more about her at the memorial service than I had heard about her in my entire life. She was a nurse, she was a baseball player back in the days of the Women's League, she was a mother of two and she is still a mystery to me.
My Aunt Eileen (three siblings named Eileen, Edith, Eleanor, and Wayne - go fig) had a memorial at her church in Hubbard, OH last weekend. It was a small service, My aunts and uncles were there, I was the only cousin, a few members from the church and a minister who looked like the Wizard of Oz desperately trying to come up with something to say about a woman he knew nothing about.
Eileen is the last of four children and you could see her narrow shoulders slump during the service. Even though she lives nearby I barely know her as well, but I can see my Grandmother in her and feel a connection.