ABT UNK: October 2022

Monday, October 31, 2022

Happy Halloween!

OK, so this isn't a Halloween costume. It was for a Lynnwood Library event celebrating the publication of the final book in the Harry Potter series in July 2005. I added some stars to an old black choir robe, but the hat, broom, and owl belonged to the library. The wizard name I came up with was Miranda Rutilus-Capillus (Latin for redhead). I worked for the Sno-Isle Libraries (a two-county system for Snohomish and Island Counties in Washington State) from August 1999 through December 2005, starting out as a substitute at various branches, and was half-time and then full-time at the Lynnwood Library for the last two years.

Friday, October 28, 2022

My Parents' Grave

Today my siblings, our spouses, my son, and I were able to gather to finally have the Rite of Committal and bury the cremains of our parents, Frederick Henry Pape (1929-2017) and Geraldine Margaret Guokas Pape (1928-2019), at St. Mary's Memorial Garden Cemetery in Fredericksburg, Texas.

My parents' cremains urns (pictured below) were placed in the vault (pictured above) before the Rite and burial.

Above, left to right: Mark Pape and wife Nazli Rampi Mayer, Karen Pape, my husband Mark Gresham, Mary Pape, Brian Pape and wife Paige Frederick-Pape, my son Eric Bolme, me.

Originally we had planned to have a Celebration of Life with a larger number of family and friends in April 2020, but COVID caused it to be rescheduled twice and ultimately cancelled. Some of my four siblings spend large parts of the year in other places (Turkey, Maine, and Colorado), and this was the first time we were all available since the last cancellation. The weather kind of matched my mood. A cold front came through and it had rained all the night before, and was much cooler (in the 50s) than the previous day (sunny and in the 70s).

Their grave has a view of Cross Mountain (in the center background in the photo above), which was near their 1993-2013 Fredericksburg home after Dad retired. I think they were happiest in this town.