- She loves parties. She holds "family gathering" at her house every Sunday. Family gathering has been a tradition in my family for generations. It's where my mom took my dad to introduce him to the family when they got engaged. It's where my husband asked my parents for permission to marry me. It's where I can keep in touch with all of my cousins, aunts, uncles, 1st cousins once removed, etc. etc. It's a place to showcase talents - playing in a piano recital this week? Why don't you practice your piece in front of 50+ family members. There is always a good dose of politics, a good dose of religion, and a good dose of love at family gathering.
- She loves shoes. Not kidding on this one. Aunt Rosemary has a SHOE CLOSET. That's right - an ENTIRE CLOSET DEVOTED TO SHOES. She has the tiniest little Cinderella feet you have ever seen and she is a total bargain shopper. It isn't uncommon to see her sporting a fancy plaid rainbowish vest and then to look at her feet and see she has shoes that match perfectly in plaid rainbowishness. I think I am being lenient by saying she has over 200 pairs of shoes - I'm sure it's more.
- She loves bragging. Not of herself though - of everyone around her. If there is something you have accomplished she will be the first to announce it to the world. I knew I had hit the big time if I made it into one of Aunt Rosemary's weekly letters. She has a very wonderful way of making you feel important and special and good.
- She loves family. As I mentioned above, family gathering is a huge tradition for us. She is a brilliant thinker, performer, and overall philanthropist - yet she put it all on the back burner to help her husband and raise 8 children. And as it turns out - that was the most philanthropic thing she did!
- She is fussy. She is the first to tell you if your hair isn't right and the first to fix you if you shirt tag is sticking out. She'll have you straightened up in a snap but it isn't because she's obsessive that way - it's because she expects good things from you. She has always been good at treating people not as they are - but as they COULD BE. She recognizes potential and is adamant about helping others achieve it. A Christ-like quality indeed.
- She loves to talk. But not aimlessly. She always had something important or interesting or insightful to talk about when I visited her. Idle chatter was not her way - talking with her was always an enlightening experience for me.
- She loves friends. And she has MILLIONS OF THEM. She has a connection with virtually every person that has walked the earth since Adam - and she's not even on facebook! I remember once telling her about my favorite professor at BYU-I and how his father was the first black member of the church to receive the priesthood. Then she told me that she was good friends with him and he even stayed with them in their home for a week - WHUUUUT! You can't "one-up" Aunt Rosemary. If you've met someone important she's probably their BFF.
- She loves God. She has a personal relationship with and divine devotion to her Heavenly Father. Her testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ is also divine and personal. She was instrumental in helping me to serve a mission and for that I will be forever grateful.
My sweet Aunt Rosemary passed away yesterday, April 6, 2009. It couldn't have been a more fitting date. She was surrounded by family and loved ones. She left a legacy that cannot be duplicated - only emulated. She is home with her parents and other family members who have gone before. She is no longer plagued with the effects of cancer...and mortality. She is at rest. She is at peace. She is with God. We love you Aunt Rosemary and miss you dearly. God be with you till we meet again.
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