Aunt Lucille

Aunt Lucille was the oldest living member in our family on my mother's side. She passed a couple of years back. Before she did, I had the chance to visit her a couple of times while she was in a nursing home not too far from my school.

Aunt Lucille was rough, but I loved her! She said what she meant and meant every single word she said. Growing up she'd share stories of her father and her claim to be his favorite. I recall the times she was lauded for her home made candy. A strict Christian of the Pentecostal Apostolic church, she played no games. She was Aunt Lucille, Mother Lucille Mathews, Sister Mathews however you wanted to address her depending on how you knew her.

The last time I visited her in the nursing home, she quickly reminded me of how tough she was. As I prepared to leave, I bent down to kiss her frail frame and she said, "You call that a kiss?" Aunt Lucille was blind and not too lucid anymore, but she was still Aunt Lucille! So, I smiled and went and "really" kissed her cheek. When I got back to the car, I sat and I wrote. I wrote about my experience that afternoon with Aunt Lucille. I didn't know that would be the last time that I would see Aunt Lucille alive.

Tonight I went to see "The Butler" for the first time. After watching the film, I had to come home and just write. Tonight reminded me of that experience with my Great-Aunt Lucille (my mother's aunt). That movie reminded me of the struggle of my ancestors of that generation. It reminded me of the charge that we have in this generation to carry the baton and make things a little better for the generation that is to come! This is why I teach!