Celebrating My Mother's Life

Very shortly after mom passed away, my little sister and I decided that neither a funeral nor a traditional memorial service would provide the appropriate venue to really honor our mother's life.  So instead, we diligently set about planning a "Celebration of Life" event in my little sister's home.  An event totally and completely dedicated to capturing the beautiful expression that was Judith Kathryn Hardy. 

Ultimately, we wanted to create a space where all those who loved her could gather, commune, share, laugh, cry and ultimately say farewell. We had but one restriction -- only the very best of everything would do . . .

Our mother's favorite color was pink so the custom-made invitations sent to over 100 people were pink:

Orchids were our mother's favorite flower so we brought in pale pink orchids from Hawaii to adorn the buffet table:

   . . . and the coffee table in the living room:

Our mother enjoyed taking her grandsons to the butterfly house at the Detroit Zoo so we had a special mixture of seeds available for people to take and plant in the spring; a wildflower medley that will yield a colorful array of flowers that no butterfly can possibly resist:

Photographs of our mother lined the piano:

 

And occupied an entire table set up in the back:

We sifted through thousands of family photographs and compiled a fifteen minute DVD highlighting the many decades of our mother's life that played continuously throughout the event and well into the evening.  We had valet parking, two tables overflowing with gourmet food, fine wine and a guest list that included people that our mother truly loved and who truly loved her.  In short, we dotted every "i" and crossed every "t" . . .  one-thousand times over! 

And, at the end of the day, I am confident that my little sister and I fashioned a very special event that our mother would have really enjoyed.  It was classy, elegant, and extraordinarily well-attended.  Despite the treacherous weather, people came in from all over to celebrate her life.  Among those in attendance were Carol and Jackie; the organist and soloist from my father's church in Madison Wisconsin. 

Certainly, one of the things that I vividly recall from my childhood is Carol and Jackie practicing before church services every Sunday morning.  My mother loved music and would often sit in the sanctuary and listen to them rehearse.  If I really think about it, I can still hear the three of them giggling, laughing and carrying on as if sharing a delicious secret to which no one else in the world was privy.  Back then my mother loved to hear Jackie sing Amazing Grace; it was always one of her very favorite songs.  So as I sat there and listened to Carol play the piano and Jackie sing that all too familiar melody, this time in my mother's memory, I closed my eyes and was instantaneously taken back 30 years to a time when my life was really, really good and everything in my world made perfect sense.

Now, there are no words to express the emptiness.  There are no words to explain the heartache and there are absolutely no words to describe how much I will miss my mother in this life going forward.  But what I know for sure is that our goodbye here is only for a little while and I do take great solace in knowing that one fine day I shall be returned to her once again. 

We love you mom . . . for now . . . for always . . . forever . . .

  In Loving Memory of Judith Kathryn Hardy 1944-2009

Comments

[Cori]

Amen, sister.

[rebecca]

Beautiful.

[Elise]

That was perfect.

[Laurie]

A wonderful tribute to your mother.

[Shana]

I am so sorry Christine. I know how much she meant to you. I totally agree with Laurie. You and your sister gave her a very nice celebration.

[Patrycja]

Beautiful and touching.

[Liz]

Guess what? You've actually silenced me. I have nothing to say about the class act you've shared with us -- what a great send-off. The treasures and gifts your mother gave you are clearly living on in you & your Little Sis.