We Will Always Play by Uncle Bill's Rules

At the age of 83, he closed his eyes and bid farewell to years of Love, Family, Friends, History, and Life. On January 31, my Uncle Bill passed away. 

Thankfully his final years were not alone. He had the company of his brother and sister-in-law, family members such as my father and I who would come to visit periodically, and a team of nurses that made sure he wasn't lost. He was suffering from Alzheimer's Disease in his final years (about 5 or so). I never visited him while he was sick; I was too afraid. My father once paid a visit a couple of years ago and gave the rest of us an update on his health. I was already too far away to afford the extra trip. I also couldn't afford a hotel room if I had visited. Instead, I just prayed for him and continued to ask my father for updates. 

My Uncle Bill was a very active and caring man. He and his wife, my Aunt Katherine (RIP, died January 26, 1996), coordinated and participated in charity events. They were very active members in the community and were highly interested in preserving the history of the towns in which they lived. He also loved to play Scrabble. 

Scrabble, when played properly, can be a very challenging and difficult game. Especially if your vocabulary isn't that strong. However, according to Uncle Bill you can look up the word prior to playing. In other words you can cheat. Before, my dad and I would never do that whenever we played but after a few games with Uncle Bill my dad claimed that we were to play by "Uncle Bill's Rules." Even if all you had was the word CAT, you could look up for another word as long as you want so long as the word you played was a real one. It definitely made playing Scrabble with my Uncle more interesting and rather educational as well. 

I remember he made the best deviled eggs that he would make a decoration of a flower on top of each one. I only wish he had given me the recipe. 

I remember he had the walking rocking chair. I always loved sitting in that chair. As you rocked it would move slowly to the right. 

I remember that he drove faster and crazier than most and made hilarious comments to the other drivers that only he and his passengers could hear. 

I remember his kindness towards others and towards us and that he and his wife were of the few that would come to our house to visit. 

I remember the screen painting that he used to do and that he taught me how to create any design that I wanted. I still have the set to this day although I no longer use it. 

I remember so much and hopefully will never forget the great things that my Uncle has taught me. 

For the last 3 months I have been having dreams about my Uncle dying. After each dream I would call my dad and ask him to check up on our Uncle for me (he was my dad's Uncle as well). Unfortunately, my dad would forget about doing so after a long hard day at work and so I never found out. If it wasn't for the letter that my father's cousin had sent to him, we may have not known about his death for a long time. My father received the letter on Monday. I wasn't even notified until yesterday-through a text message. I cried as memories flooded through my mind and sadness swept over me. I cried at Wal-Mart while buying fabric because I had told the boyfriend about the news. It was when I reminded him that we always play by Uncle Bill's rules that he knew who I was talking about. 

Later that day I reflected about the dreams I had and the thought of knowing this was going to happen soon and realized that although I didn't get to say goodbye to him, at least I never forgot him. I will miss my uncle a lot and even though he is no longer here, we will always play by his rules. 

Rest in peace Uncle Bill. 
October 29, 1926 - January 31, 2009