In Memory of Kathy (The Lady of Santa Clara Parkway)

I can't seem to wrap my mind around the passing away of my neighbor. We were neighbors in Santa Clara for 13+ years before I got married and left home for college. Her passing was sudden and it has heavily consumed my thoughts ever since I learned about it Saturday.

When my family moved to Utah, I was a little back woodsy, tom boyish, scruffy-looking, and not at all as fine tuned as Kathy's daughters. Living by the New Mexico Reservations, I knew no other environment or way of life. I really felt my family had moved up in the world when we moved to Santa Clara and that is where I started to observe Kathy.

I would go over to play with her daughters frequently since my age was conveniently sandwiched in between her two daughters. I started to notice things that I liked about her house and mostly the feeling in her house. I liked her fresh vacuumed triangles in her pale blue carpet in the front living room. At one point, I asked her how she got her carpet to look like that and she said she vacuumed everyday. Vacuumed everyday? I don't vacuum everyday, but I do know how to get nice triangles in my carpet and I think of her every time I do it.

At Christmastime, she made a big homemade gingerbread house at the beginning of the month of December. It sat on her end table as you walked up the stairs to the left. As I would go over to play, I would notice the gingerbread house slowly disappearing. I didn't understand why you would want to destroy a beautiful work of baking art. I now make a big homemade gingerbread house not only for our family, but for each of my kids. We don't eat it throughout the month of December because I like the neat look of them to last the whole month, but I think of her diminished gingerbread house every time I spend hours making them.

On Easter, she taught me how to dye Easter eggs like the pioneers using beet roots and grass. The eggs were so pretty and simple. In fact, this year I was looking for homemade dyes to make for my kids, but when it came down to it, the cost was much more than the $1.89 Paas dye. I opted for that, but I thought of her before I put the Paas in my cart.

I am sorry I can't be there to honor you. I hope this is some way that I can say thank you. Thank you for fine tuning me and letting me observe you. Your house was safe, calm, and clean. You were safe, calm, and pure. You will always be the Lady of Santa Clara Parkway.