Pauline A. Wilson

The two most important things to our mother were her faith and her family. This was evidenced by how she lived and loved throughout her life.

We lost our father when we were quite young, and since then Mommie was always our unshakeable rock and foundation. She instilled in us a sense of confidence and always told us to believe in ourselves. She taught us that we could soar to great heights if we worked hard and always kept our faith in God.

She was a sweet and gentle soul who always had a smile for anyone and everyone who came her way. She had love for everyone and never spoke ill of others. She was generous of spirit and always gave people the benefit of the doubt, often giving second and even third chances. At the same time, she always advocated and strove for excellence, while also standing her ground on her convictions. Her faith in God was unshakeable.

Her kindness and benevolence extended beyond her immediate family and even to total strangers. She raised and educated several children of relatives as her own. When she found out that one of our brilliant classmates who wanted to attend college could not afford the cost of the application process she, without hesitation, covered all his costs; and she didn’t even know the young man!. That is the kind of person she was, generous to a fault.

Mommie was the glue that held us all together. After college when some of us moved away from Houston, she made it a point we all kept in touch regularly. She came to assist whenever any of her grandchildren was born and always stressed the importance of maintaining a strong family bond. If she didn’t hear from you in a couple of days, she would call and say: “Hey, why haven’t I heard from you in so long? It’s been almost a year!”

She was also very active in the lives of her grandchildren, making sure they all spent practically every summer together with her in Houston. They always had many loving stories and lessons learned from Nana. More often than not, they also gained a few pounds because Nana made sure they were always more than well fed; her portions were legendary, to say the least! It was rude not to clean out your plate, according to Nana! Sunday service was a must too, and you had to be in your Sunday best to enter the house of the Lord.

Her love for God and family was the essence of her whole life, and she understood and lived the principle of the oneness of humanity. Everyone to her was considered her son, daughter, brother, sister, mother or father.

She loved to look good at all times, and expected the same of all of us. No one was spared the “look over” when they came to visit; young ladies had to have their

earrings on and young men had to be sure their hair was neat and clothes pressed. This was the case, whether you were her grandchild or someone else’s.

Mommie battled colon cancer and underwent multiple surgical procedures dating back to 1980, each time defying all odds and statistics. After her last procedure, she was given about four to five years to live; that was in 2001. Through all this, she remained very calm and steadfast in her faith, always saying “It is all in God’s hands and may His Will prevail”. If only we could all have that kind of faith! So, in 2016 when she was informed about the recurrence of her cancer, she approached the diagnosis with her characteristic calm resolve. She was at peace with her decision to turn down chemotherapy, and the ravages of the treatment, in favor of living a good quality of life in her final year with us . Even though she physically declined over the last couple of months, her strong spirit always shone through. She constantly reminded us about the strength in love, unity of family and faith till the very end.

Even though we grieve our loss, in our quiet moments, we still feel her love in our hearts and know that though her physical body is gone, her beautiful and kind spirit will always be with us; OBAATAN SAMAN PA!

As we celebrate her memory today, her voice clearly speaks through the soothing words of the following poem:

“To those I Love and those who love Me”

When I am gone,

Release me, let me go

I have so many things to see and do.

You mustn’t tie yourself to me with tears;

Be happy we had so many years.

I give you my love,

You can only guess how much you gave to me in happiness.

I thank you for the love

You have shown me

But now it’s time I travel alone.

So grieve a while for me,

If grieve you must.

Then let your grief be comforted by trust.

It’s only for a while that we must part,

So bless the memories within your heart.

I won’t be far away for life goes on.

So if you need me,

Call me and I will be near.

And if you listen with your heart,

You’ll hear

All my love around you,

Soft and clear.

And when you must come this way along,

I’ll greet you with a smile,

And “Welcome Home”

May her beautiful soul rest in perfect peace!