The Crayon Years

Lynell passed away Friday, February 1st at 6am.

To describe our relationship is tricky. Some would say she was like a mother to me and Julie. That is a shorthand answer and will do for most explanations. Sadly, it is also very inadequate.

Lynell was a friend, mentor, mother, grandmother, and fellow traveler on this journey of life. She and I shared a wicked sense of humor. If she cared for you, she could push all your buttons in one conversation. If she did not care for you, you had damn well better listen to what she was telling you. She did not dismiss you until she had pointed you in the right direction. If you failed to heed her instruction, then she would be done with you. She did not suffer fools lightly or at all. She cared for people (me especially) that needed attention. I am just one of many young people she took under her wings and gave that special touchpoint in life.

She cared for my family more so than if we were her own. If we were her children, then everything she did for us would have been usual. That we were not related to her makes everything she did more intimate. She became family by caring and being cared for in a way that many families often miss.

If any one thing was unfair in her life, it was that Lynell was never able to have children. Her health just did not allow for childbirth. That she never dwelt on it is a testament to her zest for a larger life. She fostered the development of thousands of preschoolers in her vocation and touched thousands more by training a legion of early childhood professionals.

She was human. She held a grudge as doggedly as any could. And she gave compassion as deeply as any caring individual could. Her headstone could read with many passages. It could be devoted wife or caring mother or Nana or retired educator or former business owner or a great list of other things.

If you knew her, you know our loss. If you did not know her, devote your life to Christ and meet her in the hereafter.

Labels: Family, Lynell

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