Remembering Aunt Ann

The past several days we have spent with the extended family, following the passing of my husband's Aunt Ann. Aunt Ann was full of life, and she was always welcoming to the family, especially the children. Aunt Ann's father and mother had both been married before. When Granddaddy and Mama Paul married, they had seven children of their own. Ann was the oldest girl of this "bunch."

The Paul children grew up in Irwin County, Georgia, and their father was a sharecropper. As time went by Granddaddy Paul was in poor health due to severe arthritis, and the children had to work on the farm at a very young age. Aunt Ann went on to marry, have four children, and she got to travel, and visit her many siblings throughout the country. Aunt Ann's youngest brother became a minister of the gospel, and he spoke at the family gathering, and he led us in singing "Bind Us Together, Lord." Family ties truly are bound together with cords that cannot be broken.



This Ohioan was blessed with a whirlwind tour of cemeteries in Irwin and Coffee County, Georgia this week. I got to touch base with my brother, and I got to see more Paul family members than I have seen in a very long time. We played "Georgia on My Mind" over and over again the whole trip, and we loved the weather in Ocilla that was 72 degrees on January 12! Georgia is truly still on my mind, and we will dearly miss our Auntie Ann! Thank you to our extended family for all the wonderful memories and your generous southern hospitality!