stevenpiziks (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stevenpiziks) wrote2026-02-05 10:39 am
stevenpiziks) wrote2026-02-05 10:39 am
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Lynne Mathis
Aunt Lynne died yesterday.
Technically, she hasn't been my aunt since I was in middle school, when she and my uncle (by blood) got divorced, but my family has a habit of keeping the exes around.
She was my mother's best friend. Her son (my cousin) Dave was my best friend while I was growing up, and his brother Mark was my brother Paul's best friend. As a result, we all spent a lot of time at each other's houses. This started when I was a baby, actually, and I still have hazy memories of Aunt Lynne's first house in Saginaw.
Aunt Lynne was funny, earthy, and outrageous. She was the relative who always makes you feel comfortable just by being who she was. Her house was cool! She had a microwave and an air conditioner! (This was in the 70s, when such things were rare.) She was a second mother to me, really. I associate her with laughter around the table, outdoor family parties, and the secret recipe for baked beans. She was the cool aunt who would talk about adult topics with pre-teenagers as if we were all grownups. She was there when I came out to my family, and she gave me a big hug and said, "There! Now that wasn't so hard, was it?"
Toward the end, her mind faded and she lost track of who she was. The rest of us will have to remember for her. And we gladly will.
Technically, she hasn't been my aunt since I was in middle school, when she and my uncle (by blood) got divorced, but my family has a habit of keeping the exes around.
She was my mother's best friend. Her son (my cousin) Dave was my best friend while I was growing up, and his brother Mark was my brother Paul's best friend. As a result, we all spent a lot of time at each other's houses. This started when I was a baby, actually, and I still have hazy memories of Aunt Lynne's first house in Saginaw.
Aunt Lynne was funny, earthy, and outrageous. She was the relative who always makes you feel comfortable just by being who she was. Her house was cool! She had a microwave and an air conditioner! (This was in the 70s, when such things were rare.) She was a second mother to me, really. I associate her with laughter around the table, outdoor family parties, and the secret recipe for baked beans. She was the cool aunt who would talk about adult topics with pre-teenagers as if we were all grownups. She was there when I came out to my family, and she gave me a big hug and said, "There! Now that wasn't so hard, was it?"
Toward the end, her mind faded and she lost track of who she was. The rest of us will have to remember for her. And we gladly will.