Sunday, August 2, 2015

Delight and Wonderment

It had only been two days after the death of my beautiful, beloved Pammy when I found her diary in the bottom drawer in the chest beside her lounge chair.  Pam had shown me bits of it before (like 20 years before), but I was surprised to find it unlocked and it was almost begging me to read it.

 
I'd guess that Pam had been given this diary for Christmas 1967, because her first entries commenced January 1st 1968.  She wrote about day to day family life in Highton and detailed a few trips away and even a holiday away, but she must have got tired of it quickly, because February 2nd was her last entry - that is, until I turned up in her life on May 25th 1968 and my darling Pammy became interested in it once again.

It was a five-year diary with each page having five row sections labelled:
19
19
19
19
19
Against the top 19, Pam had written 68 and against the 2nd, 69 - but there was so much written in 1969, that there was hardly any room left for any 1970 entries.
 
It was a wonderful history, slightly more than a year-and-a-half in time, (a little less than Anne Frank spent writing her diary) anyway it's a story of her life and her growing love for me, and mine for her.  I went to the trouble of typing it all up on my PC, so I could send it to our two girls to read.  I took 57 pages of typing.
 
For some reason, Pam had unlocked the diary, but if she had intended me to read it, I so dearly wish I could have done so whilst she was still alive - so that I could show my appreciation for such a delightful record of our early days of knowing each other.
 
I was still typing the diary when Pam's funeral was upon us.  Now that funeral went perfectly, and I was so pleased that later in that day, I was wishing that I had asked Ashley to video-record the funeral service, but he hadn't offered and I hadn't thought to ask.  But when I went back to the funeral parlour to pick up the book of attendees signatures, the plastic bag containing it also contained a complimentary DVD of the complete service - recorded, because that's what they do!  I love them!
 
The DVD is made with footage from a multitude of cameras at their Chapel. Upon watching that and continuing typing Pam's diary made for a wonderment of post-Pammy pleasure.

I might add that I'm also very pleased with how Pam's ashes have been buried at Murray Pines Cemetery here in Mildura.  At tree No. 5 in 'Belar Avenue' is...


Cleverly designed and created by Davis Monumentals, the space under "ERIC GEORGE" is for my dates of birth and death.  The space after "MOTHER" is for "& FATHER", and the space after "AND ADORED GRANNY" is for "& GRAMPS", which will happen under our daughter Sharon's care, when my time is eventually up.  Pammy's ashes are under and towards the left of the headstone (tree position "E") and mine will be towards the right (tree position "F").

My life with Pammy exceeded 48 years, nearly 3/4 of my life and we were married for nearly 46 of them.

Here it is now 29/09/2015, and my Darling Pammy would have been 66yo today, if she had survived - it is also 3 months, to the day, since she died.  I must say, her gravesite has changed a bit, compared to how it was...



I wished my Pammy a Happy Birthday and told her that I'd always love her, and I reckon I heard her say "Ditto", but it was probably wishful thinking on my behalf. 

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