Emily

I lost a friend today. I haven't seen her in several years but my love for her was always the same. You see, when I was a child, her family, Phil and Ed, and another family, the Olivers, and my family were the best of friends. We nicknamed ourselves The Hops (Huckabees, Olivers, and Price's) We barbequed together most every weekend, went swimming in the lake beside Phil and Emily's house, and vacationed together in Clearwater Florida every 4th of July Week.

Her son, Ed asked that all her friends write memories of her for his family. Where do I begin? So many memories. So many great times. But I'm going to give this a try....

Emily Huckabee was truly one of a kind. I have never known anyone like her. She was wonderful!

I do believe Emily had a sign on her house somewhere that said "all stray animals welcomed"! haha It seemed every time we were over there she had a new dog or cat that had roamed to her house. Phil always let her keep them. I can see him now, shaking his head and saying, "That's just Emily." She kept a supply of dog and cat food at all times for the animals God would send her way.

I remember the spider that she took up with. It slept on her pillow beside her head for a while. She woke up one morning and her spider had died. She was sad over losing her friend. Once she gave me a beautiful solid white kitten once. I'm sure she gave me several other animals over time. We shared the bond of loving all of God's Creation, and taking in strays any chance we had.

Laughter! The Huckabee's home was always full of laughter. It was a tiny little house but somehow we all fit in (all the HOPS). We were always welcomed. And they were always sad to see us leave. What great times we had together.

Our vacations were magical, at least in our eyes. We always stayed in the same motel, went swimming together, and ate together in the evenings. Emily loved to go looking for seashells at the beach early in the morning. One day she found a couple of large shells. She thought they were so beautiful! She brought them back to the motel and laid them on the dresser. During the night she woke up and saw her "shells" crawling across the dresser. Yes! They were very much alive! We all laughed and laughed over that for years to come!

There was the Kapok Tree Restaurant in Clearwater. Oh how Emily looked forward to our meal at the Kapok Tree! It was delicious! We could only afford to eat there once during our vacations so we saved it for the end of the week. We would spend our meal laughing and talking. Never a dull moment with "The Hops".

I remember when the Huckabees lost their beloved Phil. He died way too soon in a tragic accident. Emily lost the love of her life. Ed lost his beloved Dad. And we all lost a very dear friend. Life was never the same without Phil.

Emily, Ed and Phil attended Providence Baptist Church. Dad and I were laughing the other day about how we could always count on Emily to be the last one to show up for church. There may only have been 15 minutes left in the service, but she would still come in. It didn't bother her at all to be late. In fact, we all just expected her to be late, no matter where we were going. "That's just Emily" as Phil would say.

When my daughter was born, 26 years ago, Emily bought her a gift. She was very excited to get the gift to me. Twenty six years later, and I'm still waiting on that gift! haha She had such great intentions, but sometimes she had a hard time following through. No one minded though. We all knew how much she loved us. That's all that mattered.

Love. Unconditional love. Emily taught me about unconditional love. She loved everyone, no matter who they were or where they had been. She loved all of God's creatures. We were always welcomed in her home. And always left feeling loved.

I could share even more memories. Today I am so sad. Knowing that Emily was going home to be with Jesus, I was going to visit her one final time today. But she left this earth before I could make it. I am so sad that I didn't get to see her one last time. I am so sad that I didn't get to tell her what she meant to me and the difference she made in my life. We were both free spirits. Looking back now, I realize that because of Emily, I learned that being different, and being myself was perfectly Okay. God created everyone different. He broke the mold when he created Emily. She will live in my heart and mind until I die.

I love you Emily. Ed, I love you. And Phil, you are still missed. You made a mark on this world that won't be forgotten. So did Emily. With tears I say goodbye for now. But I will see you again someday. Emily and I will be on the side of Heaven that's full of animals! And once again we will laugh and be care free.