Wendy Degrazio (October 17, 1950-November 6, 2010)

In honour of Wendy Degrazio, in celebration of who she was to us and of the strong, quiet life that she lived.

Wendy is Tanya's mom, and Tanya is my baby brother's wife. Tanya is also one of my dearest friends and a woman I admire greatly. Many of her beautiful attributes were given and taught to her by her mother, who died November 6, 2010, at the age of 60.

Unable to attend the memorial in Oyster River, our family wanted to send our love and regrets in some way, and so we wrote a letter describing what Wendy has been to us in our lives. Here is a summary of things that remind us of Wendy:

"Some of the words that we would use to describe Wendy and her life are: gentle, peaceful, beautiful, gardener, quiet, natural, generous, private, kind, classy, sacrificial, caring, patient, soft, motivated, one who appreciated beauty and life, loving grandmother, proud mother, loyal wife, and a good listener.

Some of the things or scenes that remind us of Wendy are: hummingbirds, deer, horses, flowers, strawberry patches, canned antipasto, gardens, special gifts given to our children, a grandma loving on her grandchildren, a mother opening her door for her children, parties in the backyard, bonfires and marshmallows."

Although we were not at the memorial, we have been sent the letters and eulogy that were given at it, and from them there were a few things I learned about Wendy. They are:

*Wendy loved to cook. I knew she loved to cook, but she LOVED to cook and tried new recipes all the time.

*Wendy was born in Golden, BC and married Jim Degrazio in 1969, a young man she'd gone to both elementary and highschool with. Jim we know, their history we didn't.

*She lost her mom when she was only 20 years old.

Mostly, I learned that no matter who spoke or wrote, each aspect or description of Wendy and her life matched those descriptions give by others: Wendy lived a life of kindness, strength, creativity, consistency and love.

With Wendy's passing comes many reminders of how life is fragile and short and that we need to take every opportunity to live it to the best of our ability. What I am personally reminded about is that I shouldn't stop taking photos, because they are what ties me to those I love;

a life can be quiet and lived to the maximum at the same time; you can't say 'i love you' too many times in a day; a woman who loves her family and lives for them is one of the most powerful positive influences a child will experience in his/her life; a mother cannot be replaced, no matter how old she is when she passes.

I never took the opportunity to tell Wendy what an incredible woman she was, and so this is my way of saying thank you, Wendy, for how you lived the life you were given.

Thank you for reading.