My Mother Passed Away Tonight....

She was tough as nails and even after my dad died of cancer in 96, she was a pillair of stone. Pardon my spelling tonight... We all thought that she would live forever and nothing could take her down. She had two new knees as of '86 and insisted that they both be done done at the same time so she wouldn't lose any time at the cabin.

She was born in a small town in southern IL in '22. She graduated college when she was 19 and was truly a brilliant woman. She also sailed across Lake Michigan when she was maybe 19? She chastised me for my risky behavior yet never thought twice about canoeing a class III rapids in a whitewater ready grumman canoe (two extra ribs and a shoe keel) with me as basically a child!? LOL! I saw and learned how to light a fire without a match and what to do in lightning storm in a canoe.

She was one of a kind and the world will be that much less without her. Without her training my oldest sister may died in a rafting accident. She took no excuses and gave no quarter... She was was old school in the best sense of the word.

One thing her and I both understood was my willingness to hit the wilds with 3 days of food and be back in a week or so healthy as a horse......and I was about 12. This was the one thing she would talk about in front of me and I saw her eyes shine..... :)

Looking for a pic of mom wrestling a bear... I know I have it somewhere...:)