Immediately after someone passes away it begins. The romanticising. What they did wrong becomes a 'quirk', all they did right becomes heroic and if there were ever any hurt feelings, they soon fall to the wayside and memories of the good times are recalled with ease and joy. This helps us heal and move forward. Janet is no different. She had her quirks and her shortcomings that we'll all smooth over to remember her in a more perfect light.
In the short time I knew her, she was never anything less than larger than life. The fact that she's gone leaves me aching for a little bit of her sunshine in the form of a loud laugh, a sweet hug or some offhand observation that could only have come from Janet's brain. She was encouragement when everyone else said it was a bad idea. When everyone else was begging me to put down the beer and come down from the edge of the deck, Janet was cheering me on and telling me I could totally do a cartwheel up there...Her Dane had built it sturdy and she was sure it would hold my weight.
She laughed it off when, after she had bedded down for one of her world famous 'power naps', we completely rearranged the decor in her living room and kitchen. She had to spend the next day putting everything back into it's place. She only giggled when the very next weekend she awoke to find we'd dug her Christmas decorations out of her attic, including a 4" tall snowman and put them up around the fireplace. But the third time she fell asleep and we went a little wild at her place, she sent us a grossly inappropriate and pissy text the next morning that had us all in stitches.
She was the type of person who said, 'Dane, change the music, the neighbors are gonna think we hate black people!' when he played too much Lynard Skynard. And, 'the bigger the hair, the closer you are to God!' She was a hoot. She was a card. She was a pill. She was a hot mess. But she was our hot mess.
She loved teaching and she loved her kids. The thought of making a difference in their lives was a point of pride for her. My son was one of her students and I can honestly say from a parents perspective, that he was lucky to have someone who cared the way she did.
Janet, know that I appreciate more than I can put into words your kindness and concern for me and my family. I will miss you and will never again be able to hear a Jagged Edge song without laughing so hard I pee my pants a little.
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