April 21,1975- Jan 4, 1999
| Mary Ann
has collected things with Ladybugs on them for years. She
has pins and earrings. stationery, stickers and stuffed
toys.. John Paul was very much aware of mom's collection so
he would watch for Ladybugs. When he would get to stores
and see something with a Lady bug on it he would get so
excited and say mom and then make a motion with his little
hands like a bug crawling. He would even watch the tv and
see them all the time on shows and commercials. David my oldest son was having some problems with losing his brother. David could do no wrong. Whenever John Paul got mad at somebody he would punch his one hand with his fist and then point to his nose and say by-ya. His way of saying David. David was going to punch them in the nose. If he was mad enough at Mary Ann or I he would tell us he was going to tell David and David was going to set us straight. After just losing his grandma he couldn't believe he lost his brother too. John Paul died on Monday morning. Wednesday morning David went down to one of his friends just to get away from all the commotion and have some time alone. He was sitting outside on the carport trying to deal with his grief the best he could. It was Jan 6 so it was a chilly morning. It wasn't a good time for insects to be out and we really hadn't seen any for a few weeks. As he sat there what looked at first like a bee started to fly around his head. Flying in an almost teasing way. He watched it for a minute and it landed on his knee. It was a lady bug. A Ladybug that shouldn't have been there. It was too cold! It slowly crawled up his leg. All the sudden he knew it was his brother giving him a sign. I'm alright now David, I'm pretty, I'm whole, I care and love you David. David carefully put the ladybug in his pocket to show us but it crawled out and flew away. HIs friend told him it was a sign and he wasn't meant to keep it. While we hurt so very deep we have to remember I'm alright now David, I'm pretty, I'm whole, I love and care for you. |
| I am
sitting here thinking about John Paul and his Macarena
Gorilla. He used to get it out at times when I was reading.
It seems each time it plays it gets louder. I would watch
him and could see he would look out of the corner of his
eye to see what my reaction would be. Finally I would say
kind of loud John Paul thats enough.. He would laugh and
say "No more Pots". I would say no no more John Paul. He
would clap his hands so it would play again and laugh. I
would tell him again "No more John Paul" then I would
tickle him and he would laugh all the more. He sure knew
all the ways to get his Ole Pots attention., He loved life,
he loved to laugh and he loved to make others laugh. He
hated it so when someone cried.. I am so glad he can't see
me now.
|
| We went out and sat for quite a while by John Pauls grave. I guess I forgot how nice the cemetery he is buried in really is. It is like a little park in a way. John Paul so loved parks.. While we were sitting there so many birds were singing and it was so peaceful. We have a pinwheel on his grave as he so loved them. I started to run my hand across the top of the grave really without thinking. It was much the same way as I did when I would rub his legs... All the sudden the pinwheel really started blowing.. Almost as if he was able to feel it... Mom and dad a buried diagonally across the cemetery where he is. We so want to bury him in the same cemetery but when we checked to see how much it would cost to buy a lot and the cost of everything that went with it we didn't see how we could.. It was over $2500 without tax. There was another cemetery that the cost would be about half that. We thought that is where we would have to bury him.. A lady that I used to work with now works in another store. She was telling a lady she works with now about John Paul. We didn't expect his death so we didn't have any funds at all to give hime a funeral. The lady (Diane) said to Linda (the lady I used to work with) that if we wanted to bury him at Resthaven Cemetery she had an extra lot she would give us. Resthaven is the cemetery mom and dad are buried in. Diane lost a son in 1980. He had downs syndrome. When he died they needed 6 plots but for some reason she bought seven. She told us that from time to time they wondered why they had the extra and what they would do with it. When she heard about John Paul she knew the plot was for him.. He was to be buried by her son. Years ago when they were able to they planted and evergreen tree by her son. As it grew it grew into 2 seperate branchs from the main trunk. She told us now she knows one of the branches was for her boy and the other for ours. It was so hard to believe that 20 years ago a lady we never met bought the place for our son to rest.. |