My favorite non-Mom relative died Tuesday. Lois Thomas, world’s coolest aunt, died peacefully in Citrus County, FL. She is survived by my Mom, Catherine Wisehart of Homosassa, FL and their brother, Max Beam of Indianapolis, IN.
She was only 96!
Sometimes genes are a good thing.
Aunt Lois still lived alone, next door to my Mother. My Mom was her primary caregiver for the last 10 years or so. Calling Mom the ‘primary’ caregiver isn’t really fair. Aunt Lois still pretty much was able to take care of herself except she gave up driving a few years ago. She fell and broke her hip a couple months ago. She was still in a rehab facility when that institution took her to a hospital very early Tuesday morning. She died that evening.
She had Alzheimer’s. She still had good powers of cognitive thinking, but not much memory. I know it drove my Mom nuts. Knowing Aunt Lois, it did her, too. But she was generally healthy to the end. Her biggest bitch in life sounds like mine: insomnia. She had to worse than I do - which is saying something. She fought sleep problems for decades. The problem with her is when she didn’t sleep it pissed her off. She would take it personally and be mad at the world.
At least I don’t do that!
Aunt Lois was married for lots of semesters to my Uncle John. Uncle John was a Polish immigrant and the best investor I’ve ever known. He would pour over financial statements and other corporate documents for months before investing in a company. When he did, though, you could almost take it to the bank that a stock was about to take off. He was famous in New England as the guy with the accent (who worked as a laborer in a shoe factory) as the guy who would pepper high-flying CEOs with pointed questions at annual shareholder meetings. Uncle John BELIEVED in his rights as a shareholder. He wanted nothing but the truth about corporate goings-on.
Uncle John and my Father died the same year. A couple years later Aunt Lois moved from Salem, MA back to Indiana to be nearer my mother and uncle. She and Mom, along with my brother and his wife, all moved together to Florida a few years ago. My brother lives 10 or so miles away - he and his wife work hard taking care of the ‘girls’.
Aunt Lois never had kids…probably a bad deal for those kids never born and a great deal for my brother and me. She always doted over us - even though we only saw her a time or two a year. She and Uncle John always returned to Indiana so Uncle John could go to the Indianapolis 500 (he caught 40 or so in a row - I don’t remember the exact number). Some years they made another trip.
My brother, Bob, and I always knew she loved and cared for us - even if we didn’t see her much. That was special in a small family.
She became more important in my life as I grew into adulthood. I always talked with her on the telephone a lot - even though I didn’t get to see her that often. When I would see her…the lobster was ALWAYS on her - and don’t argue about it. ;-)
I’m flying to Indianapolis tomorrow to be with my Mom and other family members for the funeral Monday. I GUARANTEE you I will be the one crying the hardest.
Good bye, Aunt Lois. I loved you.
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07 4th, 2008| 
