Aunt Ellie....March 2/1924..to..Sept. 7/1998

Ellie in the 1950's Aunt Ellie and Uncle Philip Ellie with her Grandchildren The last photo of us together! (The day she was going home after her final visit to Canada) It hit me so hard I almost broke down right there in the middle of the store! How could I have forgotten? It's been ten years exactly and I miss her every single day..but how could I have forgotten to send up some private thoughts and prayers on her anniversary?! On September 7th, 1998, at 4.45pm, my beautiful Aunt, my Mother's younger sister died and her long painfull battle with Ovarian Cancer was over! I was there....we were all there....she was surrounded by people who loved her but she waited untill the nurse suggested we take a break in the hospital sun room while they made her more comfortable. We barely had sat down when a nurse came and said we should go back to the room and we knew.......it was over. Every minute of that day is still so vivid in my memory. How could I have overlooked September 7th this year??? I was on my lunch break and browsing in the book store. A Detroit radio station was playing in the background. The announcer came on and in one of those public announcements in a glib, cheery tone, said that September was Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month...then went on to talk about some event taking place. I dropped the book I had been glancing through and almost broke down right there and then. OMG....Ellie has been gone ten years! It hit me like a ton of bricks. Of course I know every day how long it's been, but why would I not even think of her on that day.....because I now realise that I hadn't thought about her this September 7th! Why is it bothering me so much? I don't know. My beautiful Aunt who had such an infectious laugh and was always so full of life. She was twenty years older than me, but often it felt like we were much closer in age. She was young at heart and spirit. We shared a lot of the same tastes and thoughts. I admit that sometimes I even wished she was my Mother....even though I loved my Mother! She was like my second mother, older sister, Aunt, and friend rolled into one. We would often giggle over the littlest, stupid things.....driving my Mother nuts because she didn't understand. She was the only person I actually enjoyed shopping with and she would encourage me to try on stuff that I would never have tried if I'd been alone....and she was often right about the choice! She wrote the most chatty and amusing letters....I've kept most of them. She wasn't afraid to tell me off when she thought I deserved it, and once or twice after I'd hurt her (not deliberately) she didn't hold back on her feelings. She was 72 years old when the Cancer was discovered. Ovarian Cancer...one of the hardest Cancers to detect untill it's too late. She fought it for almost two years. There were ups and downs. During a few months of 'ups' and responding well to the Chemo, she made one last trip to Canada. She was here for three weeks and boy did we pack a lot into those weeks! We made the most of our time with her. We celebrated with the fact that she had overcome her fear of flying alone! She had always feared flying but did it so she could travel, but always with someone. This time she came alone.... It was on the flight home that she became ill, and she never recovered. Three months later I received the phone call that it was "time to come home"....and I was on the plane two days afterwards. Two weeks after that, she left us. My life was left with a huge void that has never been filled. I miss you and love you so much Aunt Ellie.