One Year Ago

You know how time can sometimes fly by and other times it moves along like a sloth on Librium?  One year ago today my sister-in-law, Patrina (Patty) Altamore Kichline, died.  I can't believe that a whole year has gone by already.
All those silly "in-law" jokes have never applied to mine.  Patty was my sister.  She was the most generous, soft hearted and kind person I've ever known.  I think the "shirt off her back" sentiment came from her.
Patty was very fun-loving, too.  She loved to laugh and put up with a lot of teasing from her brother.  They had a sibling bond like no other.
Patty loved her family and the light in her eyes came from the joy her grandchildren gave her.  She was absolutely devoted to them.  She always put everyone else first without a second thought.
Peter hasn't decided how he wants to spend this day yet.  We talked about going to Red Lobster; Patty loved those biscuits they serve.  Actually, we don't have to specify a place to go to in order to honor her memory - we think about her every day.  We only need to glance around our home to see her touches - she was a great gift giver.
Patty's death has left a huge void in our family. It wasn't supposed to be like this - we were all supposed to grow very old together.  We were supposed to get at least one phone call per day - two if one of us wasn't feeling well.  We were supposed to spend time together laughing, eating and talking, talking, talking.  Since my mother-in-law's death, Patty was the family historian.  I loved hearing her stories.  I miss her.