Aunt Jan

My aunt Jan is a real living hero. I know our living heroes can't be relatives, but this will just be an extra entry. My aunt Jan is my dads older sister and the most positive, loving, accepting woman I've ever met. She is like Yoda to me, a real Zen master. There has been so much tragedy in her life, the loss of her sisters, father, son, and two husbands: one to cancer and another in a car accident, but remains upbeat and loving. My aunt Jan came out to Edmonton a year ago when my dad was in the hospital. She and my dads best friend Dennis fell in love and she moved here to be with him. It was really lovely the two of them. Dennis was a confirmed bachelor in his early 70's and my aunt Jan just getting on with life after the loss of my uncle Cecil when they found each other. In august Dennis was diagnosed with terminal cancer. They married in the hospital a couple of months ago. Dennis is at home now, with my aunt Jan there taking care of him. She has done this before, so she takes care of all his needs, including feeding him through a stomach tube, so he doesn't need a live in nurse. I don't mean this to be a really depressing story about my aunt, rather it is an inspiration to me. The two of them are the definition of a happy couple. They are enjoying the time they have together, doing everything they can with the time they have. My aunt Jan is one of the few people who can really live in the moment. I strive to be like her. She is an angel on earth if there is such a thing. She is loving and giving, but she has the strength of a lion when she needs it, as she often has. I strive to be like her, she really is a living hero.