In remembrance of my Aunt Thea

This is a picture I took of my Aunt Thea when we were on a cruise with our family for Thanksgiving in 2004. She would have turned 65 today.

One of my most vivid memories from my childhood is going to a movie with my Aunt Thea, my Aunt Marla, my brother, my cousins David, Gina, Tina, Danielle, and Jennifer. I think it may have been Turner and Hooch. Instead of stopping at the concession stand and getting popcorn before the movie started, we went to Burger King for our movie snacks. Aunt Thea had a big purse and she filled it up with burgers as we pulled out of the drive-thru. We smuggled them into the theater and didn't get caught. She taught me how to be resourceful, and the usefulness of carrying a big purse. 

I also remember watching her at the skating rink. When the DJ announced it was time for the kids to sit down and let the adults skate to a throwback song, Aunt Thea would be out there showing off her old school roller disco skills, gliding gracefully around the rink while the other parents just looked awkward. 

As I got older, I found my Aunt Thea to be a wonderful confidante. She was easy to talk to because I never felt like she was judging me.  When I was having trouble finding work in my field after graduating from design school, she was the only person who didn't try to convince me to work in a different field.  In fact, she tried to help me. She would have made a great career counselor or recruiter. After a few months, she put me in touch with someone at a firm that did interior design for healthcare facilities. By that time, I was back in school again and decided not to leave my program, but I was very grateful for her effort and her empathy. 

Her life wasn't easy and lot of things didn't work out the way she had hoped they would. But she still had a lot of faith. Her faith was what led her to be so charitable to others. She believed in blessing others because she had been blessed, and that God will bless you for giving. Over the years she gave me many small gifts that I have always treasured, from a little doll she bought for me at Target, to a Barbie and the Sensations doll named Belinda, to a notebook that I will always cherish because it has her handwriting in the front. 

She was one of the most generous, compassionate, encouraging women I have ever known. It is an honor to be her niece. I am going to miss her smile, her kindness, and her beautiful spirit. I hope that I can be the kind of aunt she was to me.