Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my paternal grandparents taken in their living room in New Castle, Delaware, probably in the late 1960s.

William Odgers (1918 - 1986)
Ellen LeGates Odgers (1924 -1970)

Photo of the Day

This is a photo of my paternal uncle taken in his family living room in New Castle, Delaware in December of 1965, while he was playing with some of his Christmas presents.  He was 11 years old.

James Odgers
1954 - 2007

What Is In A Sympathy Card?

Early sympathy cards were announcements of a person's death.  They were usually plain and included the person's name and facts, maybe an image of a tombstone.  Eventually they evolved into what we know today, a message of sympathy to bereaved family members.

I have been reading through a lot of sympathy cards as I go through things from my paternal uncle's funeral.  The thing that stuck out to me was the personal messages written in some of the cards.  Words like sense of humor, wonderful, fun, great boss, great friend, special person, great guy, and kindhearted were used to describe my uncle.  What a wonderful picture of him that was painted through the kind words of people that he touched throughout his life.  A picture that was easy for me to see because I knew and loved him.

It got me thinking, though.  How many other sympathy cards will I come across for other deceased family members?  And will any of those include kind words that will paint a picture for me of someone I never met?  I sure hope that is the case and I plan to keep looking.

One thing I do know is, even though it has been over nine years, I still miss my uncle's kindheartedness and wonderful sense of humor.