Mam
It is amazing how quick life can change, Last week everything was normal and then a faithful moment happened at around 6.40pm last Wednesday when the lives of my family changed forever. My dear mother suffered a catastrophic brain injury which she never recovered from and peacefully passed away 3 days later surrounded by her loving family.
What the last 8 days have proved is how fragile life is, nobody knows when there time will come and how quickly the smallest of things can be forgotten about. All mistakes and family issues are set aside and everybody rallies around in a time of crisis. This was defiantly the case as from early last Thursday people began to arrive and offer help in any way they possibly could.
My Mom was a very strong willed person with a temper but also a heart of gold, she lost the three members of her immediate family by the age of 26. These body blows shaped the way my Mam looked at life and how she approached her work life also.
She spent all of her working life in Listowel and made many friends while working in the town. She was known as Anne in Tarbert and to family but in Listowel she was known one way and one way only “Anne Marie”.
She spent 11 years in Neodata and then 17 years with O Connor’s where friendships were cemented for the future. All her friends have recounted countless stories where her liking for a good time and laughter have brought comfort at a time when we as a family don’t know which way is up.
The same woman wouldn’t want anybody crying at her passing, she would want laughter and also for people to get on with it. Many times I was told to just “dust myself off and get on with it no messing”.
She loved a good time, Irish music and also the many friends she had. There was always a warm welcome for each person. The one big thing I will take from the past week is that Life is so short and nothing lasts forever so if there one thing I’d like to say to people is if you are squabbling with somebody in your family at school or at work, fix it because you just never know what might happen.
My Mam taught me many things and I seem to have inherited her ability to talk and keep many conversations going. It’s a good thing because I am talking and writing for a living so hopefully this skill will keep me going long into the future.
Lastly I’d like to thank each person who has helped us through the last few days and also offered to help us through the next few months. I may have lost my Mam last weekend but she can rest assured that there have been plenty of offers to look after us and me in particular because my domestic skills leave a lot to be desired…..
I’ll have to sharpen up with the Iron and also learn not to just look at the cooker but actually take that faithful step and turn it on. She always wanted me to learn these things and now she has her wish, So in the coming weeks, I’ll be doing crash course in all things cooking, washing and cleaning….
Thank you Mam for everything over the past 26 years, you fought hard for me from minute one and never stopped. I will always be eternally grateful to you for your love and guidance in that time and I promise to keep your memory alive and not to let you down. Thank You for everything Mam until we met again, Sleep Well and God Bless.
By
Cian Mc Gibney
15/09/2016