I really like the ducks. Are they brass?
On a more personal note, has there been any healing in the family since his passing? And whatever became of that psycho who is the wife of your husbands best friend?
The ducks, chicks and eggs are all brass, as are the cranes. The cranes caused a bit of a stir because my youngest sister said that she was supposed to get them. (She was supposed to get everything else too, to hear her tell.) But Dad told me that he wanted them by a pond and that either me or my brother who runs a pond shop should take them. I asked brother for them because he got all the garden trains and Dad offered them to me years ago when I started taking care of his ponds so he didn't have to - there wasn't any discussion, brother said I should have them.
The six children are firmly fractured into two groups, one group of two sisters and another group of four (two sisters and two brothers). The two sisters who are in the splinter group did not have anything to do with anyone else even before this all happened - other than the occasional late night, drunken call to some sibling telling them off for some crime they committed sometime in the past . . . . they hadn't spoken to me in at least 10 years and there was no precipitating event, so that's just how they are. The four siblings in the group I am in have become extremely close - closer than ever, in fact - since this began. Three of us used to meet online every Monday night for a Bible study chat led by my oldest brother, but when he was forced to move and change jobs that sorta fell off and while we still maintained contact, it wasn't as regular or as close as it is now. And the second brother was never part of it, he was sort of off on his own and it's nice that he's back in the family now - Dad spoke about how he wanted that because he felt that this brother was outside the family because of him. The two sisters in the outside group have behaved badly throughout this entire year and all the trials and tribulations and are still behaving badly now . . . . even Mother is dissappointed and hurt by their actions and doesn't want to see them.
Mother has recovered better than any of us expected. This has been absolutely horrible for her . . . she not only lost her husband of 60+ years, she lost her home and her financial security (tho that's being recovered). She's never had to take care of anything herself - like insurance, bills, money, housing, etc - and so now I take care of everything that Dad took care of for her for their lifetime. But at least we aren't worried about her following him immediately . . . . we were for quite a while.
The psycho is still in Saudi Arabia and she'll be staying there for quite a while. She tried to come and stay here for a couple of months in the fall and I stood up and said "No."
