Some people come into our lives and leave footprints on our hearts. Others are there from the very beginning, helping shape the people we become. My Aunt Sue is one of those people.
I know I’m late writing this. because my Aunt Sue’s birthday was back in October, and here we are in November. But you know what? I don’t care that I’m late, because some things are too important to leave unsaid, and some people deserve to be celebrated more than just one day a year and that is Aunt Sue.
Last year, my Aunt Sue turned … I can’t say because you never ask or revel a ladies age LOL Although Grandma Sherry says she is going to shout from the Trees she is eighty because people tell her she looks like she is 60 and that’s a whole lot of years and memories, laughter, heartache, love, and life lessons. Eighty years of being somebody’s daughter, sister, mother, grandmother, aunt, and friend. I wonder if I will ever get there LOL
But to me, Aunt Sue has always been so much more than any of those titles. She’s been my second mom, my best friend, one of my biggest blessings, and one of the people I admire most in this world. And today, I want her to know that. When I was with her I felt safe.
Growing up, I had two people in my life who helped shape the woman I would become: my Aunt Sue and my Grandma Dorie and yes, Grandma Ice to. So technically that’s 3 people. LOL And yes, I can count. LOL Suzzane was blessed to know all of these people but Charlie never had the opportunity to meet his great-grandmothers but he has his Aunt Sue and that is what counts.
I don’t know if Aunt Sue truly realizes just how much she means to me back then or how much she still means to me today. When I think about my childhood, I think about the people who were there. The people who loved me, accepted me, and helped me find my way, even when I didn’t realize I needed their guidance.
Aunt Sue was one of those people. Life doesn’t always turn out the way we imagine. My Aunt Sue and Uncle Jeff divorced many years ago, and for as far back as I can remember, Aunt Sue has been on her own. But one thing that never changed was how much I loved them both. And I hope t she knows that. Because without her in my life, I truly don’t know where I would be today.
I know one thing for certain. I wouldn’t be half the woman I am without the love she gave me growing up. When I became a mother, something beautiful happened. The woman who had loved me throughout my childhood began sharing that same love with my children.
And oh, how Aunt Sue loved my Suzzane and Suzzane loved Aunt Sue and Uncle Chuck more than anything. In fact, Suzzane was named after Aunt Sue. That alone should tell you how much this woman has always meant to me. I wanted my daughter to carry a part of someone I loved so dearly.
And Aunt Sue didn’t just love Suzzane from a distance. She was part of her life. She helped make memories with her, gave her opportunities to experience things, and helped fill her childhood with moments I will treasure forever. Suzzane got to spend time with Aunt Sue, including summers filled with adventures and memories made possible because of Aunt Sue and her brother my Uncle Chuck the greatest man I ever knew.
There are things my daughter got to see, do, and experience because those two people loved her. And as her mother, how could I ever thank them enough for that? I can’t. There simply aren’t enough words. But I hope they know that every memory they helped Suzzane make was also a gift to me. Because when someone loves your child, they’re loving a piece of your heart. And Aunt Sue loved mine.
Aunt Sue had children of her own, including Jeffrey and David Neil. And David Neil wasn’t just my cousin. Growing up, he was one of my really good friends. He was somebody I loved spending time with, somebody who was part of my childhood, and somebody who would later become such a special part of Suzazne’s life.
Oh, how that little girl loved him! I can still think about Suzzane and David Neil at Aunt Sue’s house, eating cheese pizza and watching cartoons together. Nothing fancy. No expensive trips or elaborate plans. Just cheese pizza, cartoons, and two people who loved being together.
LOL isn’t it funny how those little things become some of the biggest memories we carry? David Neil went on to become a father to three beautiful girls, and he was such a wonderful daddy to them. Then one night, life changed. David Neil passed away. And just like that, someone we loved was gone.
I know his three daughters miss their daddy. I know Aunt Sue misses her son. And I miss my cousin and friend. Having lost Suzzane myself, I know there is a kind of heartache that never completely leaves a mother’s heart. I wish neither of us had to understand that kind of loss.
I wish our children were still here making memories with us. I wish Suzzane and David Neil could sit down together one more time with a cheese pizza and their favorite cartoons. But I am grateful they had those moments together. And I am grateful Aunt Sue gave them a place where those memories could happen. But I also with Charlie could have been around David Neal because they would have had a lot of fun.
Because even though the people we love may no longer be sitting beside us, the love they gave us doesn’t disappear. It stays. In our hearts. In our memories. And sometimes, in something as simple as a cheese pizza. Or the memories we created being together even though we live far apart.
But today, Aunt Sue, I don’t want this story to be about the people we’ve lost. I don’t want it to be about all the hard things life has handed us. I want it to be about you. The woman who has been there for me for as long as I can remember. The woman who still takes the time to talk to me.
Who still remembers my birthday. Who sends me cards and messages. Who still makes me feel loved, even after all these years. Do you know how much that means to me? In a world where everybody is busy and life moves faster than we can keep up with, you still take the time to let me know you’re thinking about me.
You haven’t forgotten me. You haven’t forgotten my children. And you have never stopped being someone I can love and look up to. You’ve been kind to Charlie, too, and that means more to me than I could ever explain. As well as my David who loves you so much.
When I look at my family, I see pieces of the love you helped put there. I see it in the memories Suzzane was blessed to make. I see it in the kindness you’ve shown Charlie. And I see it in the woman I’ve become. I don’t think we tell the people who helped raise us often enough how much of them we carry with us. But Aunt Sue, I carry your love with me every single day.
Your birthday came and went in October. And I didn’t sit down and write the things I should have written. I didn’t tell you everything that was on my heart. Maybe I thought there would be another day. Another phone call. Another birthday. Another opportunity to say what I should have said a long time ago.
But the older I get, the more I understand something. Tomorrow isn’t promised to any of us. I’ve learned that lesson in ways I never wanted to learn it. And I don’t want another day to go by without telling the people I love just how much they mean to me. So I’m not waiting for another birthday.
I’m not waiting for Christmas. I’m not waiting for the perfect moment. Because the perfect moment is right now. And Aunt Sue, these words are for you. A Love Letter to My Aunt Sue
Dear Aunt Sue,
I love you.
Not just because you’re my aunt.
Not just because you’re family.
But because you have been one of the greatest blessings God ever placed in my life.
You’ve been my second mom when I needed another mother’s love.
You’ve been my friend when I needed someone who cared.
You’ve been someone I could look up to, someone I could learn from, and someone whose love helped shape the person I am today.
You gave me a childhood filled with memories I wouldn’t trade for anything.
And then, when I became a mother, you gave my children that same gift.
You loved my Suzanne.
You helped her make memories.
You gave her your time, your attention, and your heart.
And even though she isn’t here for me to tell you how much those moments meant to her, I can tell you how much they meant to me.
They meant everything.
Thank you for loving Charlie.
Thank you for remembering me.
Thank you for every birthday card, every message, every conversation, and every little reminder that I’m still important to you.
Thank you for being there all these years.
Thank you for loving me even when I probably wasn’t the easiest little girl in the world to love. Laughing out loud!
And thank you for being you.
I know life hasn’t always been easy.
I know you’ve experienced heartache no mother should ever have to experience.
And I know there are days when the people we miss seem especially far away.
But I hope you never forget how deeply you are loved by the people who are still here.
Especially me.
Because if I could go back and do one thing differently, I would tell you more often how much you mean to me.
I would hug you a little longer.
I would thank you for the little things.
And I would make sure you knew that you were never just my aunt.
You were, and always will be, one of the most important women in my life.
I pray God blesses you with many more birthdays, many more happy memories, and many more reasons to smile.
And I pray that whenever you feel lonely, whenever you’re missing David Neil, or whenever life feels a little too quiet, you remember that there is a niece out here who loves you more than words can say. A niece who is proud to call you family. A niece who thanks God for you. And a niece who will always be grateful for the love you’ve given her.
Happy belated birthday, Aunt Sue.
I’m sorry these words came late. But the love behind them has been here my entire life. And it isn’t going anywhere. I love you today. I’ll love you tomorrow. And I’ll love you for all the tomorrows God allows us to share.
Love always,
Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed for my family.
If there’s one thing I hope people take away from this story, it’s this: Don’t wait for someone’s birthday to tell them you love them. Don’t wait for a holiday to thank them for everything they’ve done. And don’t assume the people who helped raise you already know how much they mean to you.
Tell them. Call them. Write them a letter. Send them a card. Or sit down and share a memory that makes both of you smile. Because someday, those memories may be the most precious things we have left. And Aunt Sue, if you’re reading this, I hope you know that if God gave me the chance to choose my aunt all over again, I’d choose you every single time.
You weren’t just part of my childhood. You helped make it beautiful. And you weren’t just part of Suzzane’s story. You helped fill it with love. I will spend the rest of my life being grateful for that. Grateful. Thankful. Blessed. Three little words that mean so much. And today, Aunt Sue, all three of them are for you.
With all my love,
GreatfulMoments.com — Where Family, Faith, Love, and Memories Come Together.
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
