In honor of Millie Baughman--1912-2008

I wish to honor my mom today...she lived to be 96 years old before she passed away, in September of 2008....today would have been her 98th birthday......she had so much life and joie de vivre all the way to the end. She went dancing to clubs with my sister and her husband in her 90's. Lots of times she was the last one ready to go home! She made friends wherever she went, young guys would see how much she loved music and bebopped to it that they would ask her to dance when she was in her 80's and even into her 90's. She would never hesitate to listen to our problems, guiding us gently in finding solutions. If we thought we were wronged, Mom always took our side, even if we didn't deserve it..she was always there for us. When life got tough, she gave us some of her strength to get through the tough times. She had resilience that most people would find hard to have, having lost two husbands in the war and my father, the third time..She found the goodness in everyone, she loved anybody who loved life and it didn't matter what your politics were or your sexual persuasions, she just accepted everybody and was their friend....she never had a bad word to say about anybody...she really was a wonderfully tolerant, patient person...

Her way to pass endless amounts of time as she got much older was to do crossword puzzles....she did the New York Times one every week and polished off many others during the week, every week...I can still see her white hair, wearing a bright rose pink top, head bent down, working so industriously over the latest puzzle. She would consult a crossword puzzle dictionary on the rarest of occasions, but most of the time she conquered them without using anything but her great knowledge which was self taught..She inspired all five of us kids to attempt to challenge our ourselves to do our best. At the age of 95, she suffered a massive cerebral hemorrage, one that should have done her in, but Mille came back, 90%. It was really interesting how she taught herself to speak again, learn her letters and write, almost like a child reciting their alphabet and learning their numbers. Millie worked and worked and worked to get her mind back, and she did almost to the point where she was attempting her beloved crosswords again. I'm sure that was key in reestablishing the nerve pathways...we had her for another year when she suffered a second stroke. At that point, Mom decided she'd had enough therapy, and it was time to say goodbye to us...We got to say goodbye to Mom before she slipped away...we were very blessed that we did...There's definitely an angel in heaven named Millie...my mom....I miss you, Mom...Love, Jeannie and family