Earlier this month, Mrs Noorman Died. She was the Mother of my best childhood friends. Mark and David lived right behind us and we did everything together with them.
EVERYTHING!
Fishing, Camping, Hunting, Midnight Movies, Vaccations, Etc. They were all in my wedding! These guys and their cousins ( Eddie and Joe Arnold.) were an extention of the family and like a second set of brothers to us.
And as a result, their parents were like a second set of parents for us. Mrs Noorman, ( I always called her Mrs Noorman.... Eric sometimes called her "Second Mom") Would drive us to the cabin up north and we would fish and help David and Mark clear their yard of ferns and brush. She would get mad when we stayed out too late fishing and when we chopped down trees that she was planning on cultivationg. In short, She was family.
And when I learned that they were having a "rememberance event" this weekend, I was torn. I personally do not like funerals much. And there are many reasons why... But probably not what you may think. I would sum it up as I think Funerals should be Happy Times in celebration of a life.
No matter how short or tragic the circumstances, Life is precious and should be celebrated. And what better time then at the end. The living must go on. The Sun Sets. The curtain drops; and the story ends for that person. (And being a Christian, I believe death is not even the real "end.".... But I digress...)
All day Saturday, I wrestled with the thought of attending. I can not explain why. (As mentioned before, I do not like funerals....) But maybe it was because I have not seen the Noormans in years. About 25 years to be "specific!" The last time I saw Mark was in Grand Haven Michigan and he had stopped in at Meijers for some camping equipment. His two daughters were still in car seats!
And David, I think he might have stopped in briefly to the Property in Kaleva duing hunting season. I can not remember the year.... But it was a Long time ago.
And so the thought kept bugging me on how I could pull off my only free day to travel to Michigan and try to catch up with my extended childhood family. I mentioned it to my boss just before leaving on Saturday and he suggested I should go. (I love Haribo!) He would approve the time off request and I could have Monday off for travel and rest if needed. So now there were no barriers. And no excuses....
There is not much you can do in three short hours to catch up the missing 30 years... But we did our best. It helps that Mark occasionally posts stuff on Facebook... So I have a vague idea of what the family is up to. And it helps when visiting with Ed and Uncle Bill a couple times a year while visitng my brother. They usually fill me in with a few details of the Noorman Clan.
Looking at all of those pictures of Mrs Noorman and Mr Noorman as they met, married, and built a life together, I was struck with a few moments of Clarity. (Some of those pics were actually taken in Our House back when we were still kids!) Mrs Noorman was not very well off those last few years.
Mr Noorman literally died trying to hide her condtion from the kids... ( So they would not worry.) And she apparently did not even know that Mr Noorman was gone after going to his rememberence party in the same location. It must have been very difficult for both of them as age and dementia took its toll.
To be married that long. And look at the person who no longer looks like those early pictures.... And only seeing that person as you did 30, 40 , even 50 years ago. Still young. Still beautiful and alive with life. And knowing.... That some day... No matter how hard you try, one of you will be leaving the other.
And it will break your heart.
And so it goes that now only Uncle Bill remains. Mom, Dad, Aunt Rose, Mr Noorman, and now Mrs Noorman have all crossed over and are now regulated to our memories. The memories of their kids and extended neighborhood kids who bothered them with questions and shenanigans. All of those scenes of their lives are now foggy memories that live on in us.
It was fun catching up with Dave and Tracy. ( I introduced them to each other! ... oh so many years ago...) And I briefly chatted with Samantha (the oldest Child of Dave and Tracy.) If you ever read the story, you might understand that finally meeting Sam as an adult was kind of fulfilling.
And then it was over, and everyone slowly faded away. Including me. I was one of the last people to leave, wanting to make the moments last as long as possible. But eventually all things have to end. And I faded into the background along with all the others. We mentioned that we should all get together again sometime, but I know in reality, the likelyhood of meeting up again will be slim. We live of different sides of the lake. And distance tends to dillute friendships over time. Another leason we tend to learn as we age.
There are many other things I wanted to blog about... But this post is long enough. And I will finish it here. A farewell to Mrs Noorman. May she catch up with our other parents in that mansion in the sky. And I will continue to try to make every second count.
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