Auntie always said she wanted a party instead of a funereal. She wanted people to tell stories celebrating her life, lift a glass, laugh, and be happy. We did our best but truthfully it wasnt entirely possible last year. This year we're trying to remember her the way that she would have wanted. This cruise to Hawaii just came up a couple of months ago and when we saw the itinerary and realized that we would be in Lahaina on December 15, we knew that we had to do this. Lahaina is in one of Aunt Marie's top five places in all the world and it is my goal that Amaya will visit them all eventually. Today we will remember Auntie fondly and with laughter. We ask that everyone think of someone they love and do something to make them smile. As we learned from Auntie, sometimes it's the smallest gestures that can make the biggest difference.
It feels like summer here in Hawaii. At home there's rain and snow but I'm looking out at a deep blue ocean and a bright blue sky. It brings to mind beaches, seagulls, and lobster. Lobster was one of those special meals. We would cook them for her whenever we could be with her for her birthday. Rhode Island, Charlestown Beach to be exact, was where the celebration would take place. We would buy the lobsters in Galilee and cook them for anyone who was up for the party. We liked them large and mostly unadorned although if the crowd was particularly large we would make them into pasta or some other special dish. Nothing made Auntie happier than a week at the beach surrounded by the people she loved. She and Alex had a special relationship and she loved the dishes he created just for her. They were peas in a pod and seeing it always made me smile.
I don't know if I'll find lobsters today. They are already one of Amaya's favorite foods. I do know that there will be a two glasses of champagne this afternoon lifted in fond remembrance of a woman who loved unconditionally and with all of her heart. We'll do our best to follow her lead.
