Good-Bye Auntie Annette

Mom phoned yesterday to say that Auntie Annette had passed away. She is my dad's mom's brother's wife.

Hearing Auntie Annette's name made me think of different ways she touched people. She was thoughtful. She had kind words to say - always. She always wanted to help someone or give something to someone. She lived in a town about 150 kms from where I grew up. When we went shopping there, it seemed as if I ran into her at unusual places, usually alone.

Once I was with a few of my girlfriends. We went to Arby's for lunch. We parked and were walking across the parking lot when we heard someone banging on the restaurant window - from inside. The glass was tinted, so we couldn't see who was. We were kind of looking around to see who they were banging at. After all, we didn't even live in that town! When we went inside, we saw it was Auntie Annette. She was eating lunch by herself, had seen me, and was very excited for a visit.

The last time I saw her was 3 years ago at my Great Grandma's funeral. We were sitting at a table at the tea after the funeral. She had gotten something to eat and was looking for a place to sit. We waved her over and had a great conversation. After a bit, she said, "I have something for you." She pulled a recipe for No Bake Squares out of her purse. I still don't know if she simply carried recipes around to give out at random or if she put it in there with me in mind.

As a tribute to her, I dug it out of my recipe box and thought I'd share it with you:


No Bake Squares

1 c. butter or margarine
2 c. brown sugar
1 c. corn syrup

Boil together, then add 1 tsp vanilla and then add 1 cup peanut butter. Mix well. Then pour over the following:

4 cups cheerios
2 cups corn flakes
2 cups shreddies (or similar cereal)

Mix well & then press in a 14"X16" greased pan (or line pan with waxed paper).

Thinking of you today, Auntie Annette.