It's Friday! Here's my 5-minutes...
Ordinary
I write this having just got back from a funeral. One of our neighbours died a couple of weeks ago, having battled cancer since October (at least, that's when she found out she had it.)
At the service, mostly in Greek, I was struck by how extraordinary most ordinary people are. Most of us live in the everyday - sleep, eat, work, friends etc. We're all ordinary really. But in between all that normal stuff we all have extraordinary stories.
Nicky had plenty of those stories. A life full of extraordinary moments.
- of growing up in Greece, family life, school life
- of how first polio, and then a serious accident on her Vespa broke and weakened her body but strengthened her spirit
- of romance and love with her husband Bernard
- of working double shifts as a nurse, earning extra money as a hairdresser and police translator and bringing up her son all at the same time
- of travelling the world alongside her beloved husband
- of parties, dancing and singing, the things she loved to do
We've only known her a couple of years - she was one of our neighbours in this block of flats. But visiting Nicky always involved looking through more photos and hearing more stories. Usually accompanied by samples from either her baking or her drinks cabinet, often both!
But the most extraordinary thing about her was her faith. She knew, unswervingly confidently, that she was loved by God. Death was not scary for her. It was peace.
It'll be quiet here without her. But as her son, Theo, said today, we don't need to mourn for a life lost, but can celebrate a life well lived.
Ordinary
I write this having just got back from a funeral. One of our neighbours died a couple of weeks ago, having battled cancer since October (at least, that's when she found out she had it.)
At the service, mostly in Greek, I was struck by how extraordinary most ordinary people are. Most of us live in the everyday - sleep, eat, work, friends etc. We're all ordinary really. But in between all that normal stuff we all have extraordinary stories.
Nicky had plenty of those stories. A life full of extraordinary moments.
- of growing up in Greece, family life, school life
- of how first polio, and then a serious accident on her Vespa broke and weakened her body but strengthened her spirit
- of romance and love with her husband Bernard
- of working double shifts as a nurse, earning extra money as a hairdresser and police translator and bringing up her son all at the same time
- of travelling the world alongside her beloved husband
- of parties, dancing and singing, the things she loved to do
We've only known her a couple of years - she was one of our neighbours in this block of flats. But visiting Nicky always involved looking through more photos and hearing more stories. Usually accompanied by samples from either her baking or her drinks cabinet, often both!But the most extraordinary thing about her was her faith. She knew, unswervingly confidently, that she was loved by God. Death was not scary for her. It was peace.
It'll be quiet here without her. But as her son, Theo, said today, we don't need to mourn for a life lost, but can celebrate a life well lived.
This blog is part of Five Minute Friday - a group of bloggers who write about a given subject for five minutes without, stopping, overthinking, editing or backtracking. There's rules:
* Check what the prompt is on www.lisajobaker.com
* Write a post in only five minutes on that topic on your blog.
* Link to Lisa's website and invite friends to join in.
* Select the permalink to your post {so not your blog url www.lisajobaker.com but your post url www.lisajobaker.com/2012/07/five-minute-friday-2/ }
* Using the linky tool at the bottom of Lisa's Five Minute Friday post enter your link.
* Your post will show up in our Five Minute Friday linky.
Be sure and encourage the person who linked up before you!
What a beautiful testimony of a life well-lived. And no ordinary life at that - or was it? Maybe that is how we are all supposed to live....
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing and being the entry before mine!
Blessings to you!
The ordinary moments of her life--you've made such a touching, heartfelt tribute to Nicky! Thanks to your tribute, she's extraordinary to me. Visiting from FMF.
ReplyDelete