The Craftiest Workshop

It has been a rough couple of days. Late Sunday afternoon, my mom’s brother Blair passed away. He had been ill for quite some time so it was not a shock but death is always a surprise. Wednesday morning I heard that my dad’s sister’s husband died the night before; he was also sick and no longer living at home. Two uncles gone in three days.

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My Uncle Blair and his wife Germaine are my godparents. We lived quite far away from each other but they would always send me special gifts on my birthdays and at Christmas.
I spent a summer on Vancouver Island in 1989 at a sea cadet band camp. My uncle came and took me out on some of the weekends. He had a fondness for the military and for music. He took lots of pictures that summer and made an album which he gave to my parents at their 25th anniversary celebration as I could not be there.

For all of our visits to Vancouver Island over the years, Uncle Blair was our tour guide. He took us to interesting places pointing out the natural attractions and telling us the history. He was also the family historian studying the genealogy of my mother’s side of the family.

My Uncle George lived in the same small town I grew up in. He ran a sort of farm supply/ hardware store. Sometimes we would go over to my Aunt and Uncle’s house for tea and most Christmas’s we would gather as an extended family for Christmas dinner. I recall that he liked to tell jokes and tease us. It was always nice just stopping to chat with Uncle George if I saw him as I was getting the mail or heading home from school. He was a man of few words but always took the time to ask how things were going.

I spent much of my day Wednesday baking. It often helps when I am feeling emotional. For some reason pie is a “go to” comfort dessert. I found this recipe in one of my Gooseberry Patch Christmas books. It tastes like a caramel butter tart. The recipe made one pie (bought crust) and 6 tarts. Next time I may try it without the pecans and just make tarts.

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I had another post planned for today but I thought that perhaps, because most you are people of faith, you could say a prayer for both of my uncles and the loved ones they left behind. It is very hard when death comes in twos.