deuddersun2

The following was posted by my brother, scroff, on his website Any Which Way, as a dedication to our Mother after she passed away on May 28, 2004. I have reprinted it here for three people Magster and I dearly loved and will dearly miss, her parents, Emil & Marge, and my Mom, Sis.

deuddersun


Parable of Immortality

I am standing by the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze
and starts for the blue ocean.
She is an object of beauty and strength,
and I stand and watch until at last she hangs like a speck of white cloud
just where the sun and sky come down to mingle with each other.
Then someone at my side says :
- 'There she goes!

Gone where?
Gone from my sight - that is all.

She is just as large in mast and hull and spar
as she was when she left my side
and just as able to bear her load of living freight
to the places of destination.
Her diminished size is in me, not in her.

And just at the moment when someone at my side says:
- 'There she goes! ',
there are other eyes watching her coming,
and other voices ready to take up the glad shout :
- 'Here she comes!'

Henry Van Dyke 1852 - 1933

Emil Ebert - June 11, 1921 - May 20, 2004

Mag's Dad, Emil, left us on Wednesday, May 20, 2004. Emil was a quiet man, quick to laugh, yet never seeking attention for himself. His family was everything to him.

Part of his family was his youngest daughter, my beloved Magster.

We all knew Emil had served in the United States Army during World War II. We just never knew to what extent. So it was quite a surprise to find out that he had earned 5 Bronze Stars! Five. And never a word. If that doesn't tell you everything you need to know about the man, I don't know what does...


I guess I don't have to tell you that this second tragedy in three weeks has hit Mags and me pretty hard. Emil was a "Real Guy."


His son, Dan, says it best:


"Our Dad was a very simple man who did not have a lot of advantages growing up. He lost his Mother at a very young age. As a matter of fact, he was in foster care for some years because his Dad had to go out & work and there was no one-else to take care of the children.

He never got past the 10th grade of high school because he had to make sure his brother and sister went to school. He would wait at the back door of the school for the inevitable; his brother & sister (uncle Karl & Aunt Rose) to try to play hooky.

In spite of his lack of education, he was very good at a lot of things, especially math. I know this for a fact, because I probably would have failed it if not for his coaching.

He served his country bravely in World War II in Europe, including the Battle of the Bulge. He never told us much of his experiences. It wasn’t until recently we became aware that he received 5 bronze stars for bravery. He was quite a hero.

Marge & Emil. We lost Mag's Mom, Marge on July 14, 2002.

After the war he met and married our mom, who was truly the love of his life. Together they raised 3 children, me and my 2 younger sisters, Rosemary and Margie

As his son, I had my heroes as a kid; Ritchie Ashburn, John Wayne, Willie Mays, and so on, like any other kid.
It wasn’t until I became a man that I realized that a real hero was living in my house all this time, my Dad. Here’s why:

He worked very hard at a job that he did not like for 35 years, never complaining, putting a roof over our heads and food on the table.
The most important things in his life were the welfare of his wife and children and he was always, always there for them.
He never asked for anything for himself.
He was a very protective father to his daughters, keeping a close eye on anyone they dated.

Marge, Emil & Grandaughter Rosemary, Mag's niece.

He never knew it, but much of what I am today was because of his influence. He taught me most of my basic values; have a strong work ethic, work and study hard. He is, and always will be my hero.

He had a great love for and prayed daily for his children, grand children, and great-grandchildren.

Now his work is done. He fought a long battle with a debilitating illness and suffered the loss of his wife.

Now he can rest his weary head with our Lord and our Mom.

Goodbye Dad.

We will love you and miss you always".

(Out of respect for Emil, there will not be anything new posted here until Father's Day.)

deuddersun

Mary Regina "Sis" MarkunasOctober 7, 1926 - April 28, 2004


Our little family sufferred a terrible loss on Wednesday, April 28, 2004, when our Mother passed away after losing a long, hard fought battle with lung cancer. The photo above was taken at a barbecue last summer when scroff and I got her to ham it up a bit with Cardboard Elvis. She did so with a laugh. Mom loved life. It was the last time the entire family was together until the night she died. When the end came, we were all there, my Father, my brother Scroff and my two daughters, holding her little hands, as she slipped away from us, ever so gently.

She died as she lived. A gentle, loving soul, slow to anger, quick to forgive. She and my Dad were "old school". They got married in 1950 and they stayed married for the rest of her life. If I know my Dad, he'll still be married to her for the rest of his life too.


Dad & Mom on their Wedding Day

Not that there weren't any lumps in the porridge. There always are. But instead of one leaving the other, they worked things out. That's what true love is. And my Dad loved my Mom with a passion you just don't see anymore. He still does, he always will. My Dad is what I have always tried to be, "The Right Kind of Guy".

I remember watching an old TV game show with my Mom when I was little; "Queen For A Day". I asked my Mom if she would like to be on the show, if she would like to be the Queen. She told me she already was a Queen, my Father's Queen. My Father once told me, "She may be your Mother, but she's my Babydoll." She was Dad's Queen, his Babydoll. Right to the end.

She loved us both as only a Mother can. She backed us both as only a Mother could. Scroff cleaned himself up and now helps others do the same. Me? Well, the less said the better. After all, Mom always said, "If you can't say something nice about somebody, don't say anything at all."

She was the last of the "Old Breed", a real New York City "Goil". Brooklyn born and Brooklyn bred.

We are really going to miss her.

Her Son...deuddersun.

Bye Mom...I love you. We love you.


(Out of respect for my Mother and the folks who are stopping by and offerring their respect, I will not be posting anything-else until Mother's Day. Thank you all for your kind words, thoughts and prayers. - d.)