The DU Lounge

My lovely neighbor across the street from me was a 2x widow. Her first husband was alive when we brought our house in 1993 and got to know her. The first husband was about 15 years older than her and he died in the late 90’s. A co worker she knew from her church had also became a widower and they eventually married on April 18
( earthquake anniversary for us San Franciscans) we used to joke about that. So they traveled for a few years went on cruises and they were enjoying life and he had a massive heart attack one night and he died suddenly. I remember having to go to work that morning but when I came home I went over to her home to see how she was doing and checked in on her constantly. Thanksgiving morning on 2003 her friend rang our doorbell and asked if we had seen her. We checked in her garage her car was there and her friend went back to her own home and got her house keys.The three of us went in and checked her home and sadly found her dead on her bedroom floor was a heart attack. I will never forget the smell and she was exposed and my husband threw her bedspread over her while we called the police. Thanksgiving was so sad that day thinking about the lost of such a great woman. Who comforted me the night my Father passed away and stayed with our son while we went to get my another and bring her back to our place because we didn’t want to leave her alone. And how when my mother came in the door she immediately hugged my Mother and comforted her. My Mother would always tell how this lady gave her strength that night.

So every Thanksgiving I think of Mary Liz and still every Halloween hang the witch my husband hung from our roof that looks like she’s flying past our house. Mary Liz asked us to keep it up for a week after Halloween because when she had her morning coffee she got a laugh and smile over that witch. We call the witch the Mary Liz memorial. This year she got a new costume!