"I have only slipped away into the next room, I am I and you are you. Whatever we were to each other, that we still are. Call me by my old familiar name. Speak to me in the easy way which you always used. Play, smile, think of me. All is well."~ Henry Scott Holland (shortened from What is Death?)This memorial website was created to remember our dearest Evelyn Gardner who was born in Illinois on May 13, 1924 and passed away on July 6, 2008. You will live forever in our memories and hearts. We think of you and remember you every day.
Jan 2, 2010:
Mom, you & Dad now have my granddaughter there with you. Jaidyn Marley Phillips died last night. She was 2 1/2 months old. Please watch over our little angel....her twin, Izabella is still with us. Please watch over Tiffany as she grieves her baby...
Jaidyn Marley Phillips
Oct 14, 2009 - Jan 1, 2010
Added May 13, 2009:
Who’s Really Blessed?
I had the most memorable Mothers Day this year. My oldest daughter wrote a beautiful and touching essay about me and submitted it to a local grocery for a Mothers Day “Queen for a day” contest. She won! I was gifted to a Mothers Day brunch with my family as well as a limo ride, a months worth of tanning, flowers, tiara, gift cards to local merchants and so may kind, flattering comments by members of our community. They spoke of the “sacrifices” I had made in caring for my husband after his illness and my mother in her last few years. While these comments are recognized and greatly appreciated, in my heart, I really believe the praise should go not to me, but to my parents. Today would have been my Mom’s 85th birthday. With Mothers Day just past, Memorial Day around the corner and Fathers Day sneaking up on us…I can’t help but think of them. I never felt that I was sacrificing a thing when I took care of my husband or my Mom; I was doing what I felt any person would do who truly loved their spouse or their parent. That is how my parents raised me; they demonstrated this everyday of their lives. I was blessed with the closest thing to perfect parents that one can find in an imperfect world. I was raised with advantages many don’t have…parents who honestly loved one another. We weren’t rich, Dad worked at Keystone Steel & Wire, Mom stayed home. We were comfortable, they saved and made wise choices and we never lacked for anything. Mom always helped a group of elderly women in nearby Peoria. Every Wednesday, she would pick them up and they would go grocery shopping and out for lunch, in the summer I would go too, it was a lot of fun. If any of the ladies needed handyman work or a TV repaired, Dad was there for them. Later, when my grandma was showing signs of Alzheimer’s (known as “senility” in the 1970’s), she moved in with us. She became a daily fixture in our lives until she passed away in 1974. When I was older, Mom and Dad would offer me their opinions and advise, yet they never interfered in my choices, even the poor ones I may have made. They respected my right to live my life as I saw fit and to make my own mistakes. When my Dad suffered a debilitating stroke in Jan 1987, Mom took him home to recover; a nursing home would never have entered her mind. She and Dad were inseparable until he passed away from an aneurysm in July 1991 at the relatively young age of 63. She was lost without him and focused on what remained of her family. Mom and I spent a lot of time together in her remaining 17 years. She was with me throughout the long journey of my husband’s illness and recovery to lend her support however she could. If something wonderful happened, she was the first person I called, if something horrible happened, again, she was the first person I called. She moved into her own little house behind ours in early 2004 when she started showing clear signs of Alzheimer’s, like forgetting to change clothes (she was the neatest person I ever met). She slowly went downhill until last year when a whole new stage was starting to emerge. She became more child-like and needed more help than ever. She suffered a stroke last June, I found her. The hospital sent her home on July 3, and she passed away on July 6. She never really regained consciousness after her stroke. This was my first Mothers Day without my Mom, and I really miss her. But I am also happy for her. She never wanted to “be a burden” as she said, on anyone…and she wasn’t, she was an integral part of our lives. From the day my Dad passed in 1991, all she wanted was to be with him again and now she is. I feel their presence with me everyday, I know they are not truly gone and I know that I owe everything I am to them and their example.
So while I want to thank everyone involved in making my Mothers Day one that I will never forget, I also want to make it clear that all the beautiful and kind words I have recently been honored with, clearly belong not to me, but to my wonderful parents. I was the one who was truly blessed to have them.
Once in Awhile
Cindy Campo
Every once in awhile I play hide & seek with you
In your mind Every once in awhile
You see the signs That I- Leave behind
But, every once in awhile Your up all night
Tossing & turning with questions why
Teardrops on your pillowcase I brush my hand across your face
Please understand it was my time And there’s no such thing here as goodbye
And I’m living memories that we made And I’m watching new ones you create
Every once in awhile When you think of me
I hope it’s with a smile, Cause I’m watching you
Never leaving you behind I’m standing next to you
Don’t you see the signs I’m sending you?
I’m that hummingbird Flying circles round & round your head
Shiny pennies that you love to find…heaven-sent
Three A.M. In your dreams When I hold you tight
Yeah-
Every once in awhile When you think of me-
Smile...Cause I’m watching you
Every once in awhile You drive that extra mile
So you can talk to me You’re not crazy
Yeah
I’m all those times When you laughed & you cried
And you laughed again Cause you saw the signs…
Oh, Talk to me- I’m listening
Can’t you tell by the way I’m answering?
I’m the message in the song on the radio
I’m the fragrance in the air that comes & goes
I’m the joke we shared so long ago
That you tell yourself when you’re alone
I’m the ring When no-one’s on the telephone
And how I love it when you “get it”
You can feel my soul….
Every once in awhile When you think of me
I hope it’s with a smile, Cause I’m watching you
Never leaving you behind I’m standing next to you
Don’t you see the signs I’m sending you?
I’m that hummingbird Flying circles round & round your head
Shiny pennies that you love to find…heaven-sent
Three A.M. In your dreams When I hold you tight
Yeah-Every once in awhile When you think of me- Smile
Cause I’m watching you
Every once in awhile When you think of me
I hope it’s with a smile, Cause I’m watching you
Never leaving you behind I’m standing next to you
I Know you see the signs I’m sending you
I’m that hummingbird Flying circles round & round your head
Shiny pennies that you love to find…heaven-sent
Three A.M. In your dreams When I hold you tight
Yeah-Every once in awhile
When you think of me-
That’s me....Loving You
Every once in awhile I play hide & seek with you
In your mind
| Sue |
Poem |
December 5, 2008 |
Please don't cry for me,
I'm where I need to be.
The Angels brought me here,
And they're always near.
You gave me all your love,
And I brought it with me up above.
I know you feel it everyday,
I'm really not that far away.
Please don't cry those tears,
Or waste away your years.
Please just hold me in your heart,
Where we're sure to never be apart.
And when the time comes, please don't be late,
Remember, I'll be waiting for you at Heaven's gate
