RIP Frances

Posted on December 18, 2021 by Mama Cormier

…I’ve been MIA for the last two days dealing with a very sick Frances

Frances was our beloved dog for over 14 years. It was just a few days ago that I announced that she turned 15 and little did I know that 5 days later she would be gone. It is never easy to have to make the decision to put down an animal. We both knew that the time would come when we would probably have to make that decision. Apparently very few dogs die naturally.

My husband always said that Frances was his dog but we had a special bond of our own. When I came home from work she would always greet me at the door and even in retirement she would come to me for walks. She loved going to the cottage with me, when Kevin couldn’t and she quickly learned that I had a soft touch when it came to doling out treats. Kevin always gave her liver treats before he retired for the evening but as soon as he went upstairs she would start on me. She knew she could break me down if she was persistent enough and she was persistent.

A couple of weeks ago I ran into a neighbour who was out walking her second dog. Her first dog had passed away a couple of years ago. Frances and Pichou were puppy friends. She was amazed that Frances was still with us and she declared that Frances was the last of the six or seven puppies that hung around together in the summer of 2007.

Every time we have a dog, my husband firmly announces that there will be no more dogs when the present one goes but this time he started thinking about the next dog he wants to own. This time I’m the one that says no more dogs (for now anyway). I was hoping that travel would be in the cards for us and having a dog just complicates that. It will seem odd though not having a dog in the house. We’ve had dogs for the last 38 years. Who do you think will win this argument?

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Day 25 – Not Forgotten

Posted on April 27, 2020 by Mama Cormier

….April 25th is ANZAC Day in Australia and New Zealand, similar to our Remembrance Day

Thanks to Leanne Cole for hosting the 30 Day at Home Challenge.

On this day the theme is ‘not forgotten’. The past 9 days have been very difficult for all Canadians and for me personally. On April 18th and 19th a madman went on a rampage and gunned downed 22 innocent people in Nova Scotia. Dressed as an RCMP officer and driving a car made to look like an official police car this monster went on a killing spree that lasted 13 hours. One of the ways he got people out of their homes was by setting houses on fire and naturally in this small rural community this prompted people to go outside to see if they could help their neighbours. Instead they walked straight into the path of this killer.

One of my friends and colleagues was one of the victims. Lisa McCully safely put her children in the basement of her house and walked outside to see what was going on. As she rounded the corner of her house she was shot. I waited over a week to find out when and how she was killed. I feared for her children.

I knew Lisa over 14 years ago when she was a teacher at our school. She was only with us for a year but in that time we got to know each other well and we frequently went out together. I was with her when she met her husband and Kevin and I had them to our home for dinner. Unfortunately Lisa was declared surplus at our school and moved to another school closer to my home. My neighbour’s daughter had her as her grade three teacher that year.

When Lisa moved back to Nova Scotia we kept in touch through Facebook. She got married there and had her two children there. At some point her marriage broke up and she discontinued her Facebook page. I thought of her often and in fact she came to mind just a couple of days before this tragedy hit.

My heart is broken. I feel for her family and for all the families of the other victims. It’s been difficult to grieve in the normal way because of COVID-19 but Nova Scotians and Canadians have been sending videos, text messages, making music and laying flowers and making tributes on makeshift memorials.

Lisa was a mom, a teacher, a sister, a friend and a beloved member of her community. We will all miss her. Difficult times are ahead for her students and her family.

Rest in Peace my friend.

Love, Carol

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Good-bye Dear Tante H: Rest in Peace

Posted on November 2, 2014 by Mama Cormier

After months of hospital and then nursing home visits my sweet aunt passed away early this morning. She outlived her sister and my mother by 22 years. The matriarchs in my family are now all gone. My father’s only sister also passed away earlier this year.

My sisters, me and our Mom.

My Tante H was a beautiful and independent soul. She moved to this country 32 years ago, shortly after the death of her husband. Like her mother before her she had no interest in finding a new man. She continued to raise her two teenaged children, as a single mom, in a new land and lived off the proceeds of her husband’s company. Her son eventually married and made her a grandmother to two girls and one boy. Her daughter is currently single but blessed her mother with a grand-dog.

My Tante H and my two cousins as toddlers.

My gorgeous aunt and her husband, my Uncle G.

The last four months have been difficult but in a way I got to know another side of my aunt. During our visits she answered numerous questions I had about my family’s past but I think that there are many more secrets that have gone to the grave with her. It also gave me an opportunity to reconnect with my cousin. She lives in another city about 45 minutes away (on a good day). We’ve probably seen more of each other in the last four months than we have in our entire lives.

The entire experience has made me appreciate my own immediate family more. Don’t put off tomorrow what can be done today. Pick up the phone and call your loved ones. Answer that email that’s been sitting in your inbox. Take some time to visit an elderly relative. Tomorrow may be too late.