Last is Best...So They Say

Dear Emily,
You are the last of my children to be married. They say "last is best..." and I'll have to agree when I experience the comfort and satisfaction that come when I contemplate the reality that each of my children has married the right individual, in the right place, at the right time.

However, I would have to describe this event as the most bitter-sweet as I say good-bye to "motherhood" as I have known it for the past 29 years and enter "gammiehood" exclusively.

I recall how scary your birth was and how sweet it felt to hold you in my arms and smell your newborn freshness.

I recall how you adored your big brother and imitated his every move

and how he helped you keep your balance as you first learned to ride your bicycle.

I recall how you made us laugh and how we couldn't get through a family meal without busting up because you were so funny.

I recall how you could memorize the best lines from a movie after viewing it just once.

I recall the night you hid under the blankets that had been tossed off our bed and scared the living daylights out of your dad when you grabbed his ankle as he went by.

Five of my little munchkins

I recall how your life was a song and how you sang each and every note so sweetly.

How do you play father of the bride AND photographer? You run REALLY fast!

I recall how you loved to "fix things" with your dad. I think that the rooftop was your favorite place to be.

I recall how you climbed onto our bed at the end of your day and shared every detail of your experiences.

My five "little ones" all grown up

I recall how you didn't want to leave home for college,

The Fairbank Family

and how you didn't want to leave college for home.

I recall how excited you were when you received your mission call to the California Riverside Mission just like your big brother.

I recall how you would use a different dialect each time you answered the phone just to keep us guessing.

I recall how you went all the way to Seattle to help your big sister paint her living room

and how you held your little sister's hand as she experienced the temple for the first time.

I recall how your eyes sparkled even more than your wedding ring the morning you were married.

You have "the best," Joseph Dodd Fairbank. You know that, don't you?


I love you,
Mom... I mean Gammie