It’s been just over three weeks since I last wrote, and yet, it feels like a lifetime has passed. This summer has had some wonderful moments thus far, but it has also brought with it a heartbreaking loss for our family. I don’t write much about my personal life and family in this space, but I can’t continue on with business as usual without taking a moment to acknowledge this loss. Almost two weeks ago, my aunt, my Dad’s eldest sibling, passed away unexpectedly. I don’t know that you can ever be prepared to lose someone you love, but this was a death that caught us completely off guard. I find myself oscillating between grief and shock as I try to come to terms with the reality of her being gone. I had the honor of being able to write a portion of her obituary, and the process of writing it, while one of the hardest things I’ve done because I wanted to honor my aunt well, was also healing for me. So, I thought rather than avoid the topic, I’d take the time to acknowledge and honor her here, in this space and share a part of what I wrote and in turn, just a bit who she was . . .
Karen Gail McCrary, 69, was called home to the Lord on June 14th, 2023, leaving behind a legacy of a life lived in His service with impact on many. Karen was born on July 1st, 1953, in Luling, TX to Bettie and Wayne McCrary, Sr.
The eldest of five children, Karen was always available to help keep her younger siblings in line as they moved to various areas of the state while Wayne, Sr. worked in the oil industry. Eventually, the family landed back in Luling where Karen finished out the remainder of her school years. In high school Karen was an athlete, a diligent student, and an active participant in any number of extracurricular activities. She played volleyball and basketball, served on the pep squad and student council, was part of the yearbook staff and one act play, and was Miss FTA and Homecoming Queen nominee her senior year just to give a small sampling of the many goings on in her teenage years. Most in keeping with her personality, Karen was voted wittiest in high school in her sophomore, junior, and senior years. Karen graduated from Luling High School in 1971, and her quick wit and love of both reading and writing would prove to be instrumental as she began her career at the Luling Newsboy.
Family was extremely important to Karen. While no one could ever best her in a game of Scrabble, many a loud and boisterous debate happened around the McCrary table while eating a meal or playing dominoes. Karen was a daughter, a sister, and a beloved friend to so many, but perhaps her most important and cherished role was that of aunt. Although Karen never had any children of her own, she loved and spoiled her nieces and nephews as if they were hers, and they loved and adored her equally as much. She was happy to train those little people in the skill of sarcasm and wit, and they provided her with endless entertainment and reasons to chuckle. Times were never more fun than when Aunt Karen was around. Whether it was baking and decorating Christmas cookies, hosting slumber parties, taking dozens upon dozens of candid photos, writing about their latest accomplishments or mischievous shenanigans, as the case may have been, in Karen’s Column, or letting them help stuff papers at the Newsboy, she was an ever-present presence in their lives from the moment they were born, and she carried on that tradition of love and fun with her great nieces and nephews.
This doesn’t even begin to encompass all of who my Aunt Karen was or the full life she led. I could share stories for days. She was a gifted writer . . . she was the editor and publisher of our small-town newspaper for decades. She was funny and fun, and spent what probably added up to years of her life volunteering with various organizations in my hometown. She loved her friends and her family and her community well. So, while it would take a series of novels to truly do justice to the person she was, I hope it gives those reading a small glimpse into her life.
Grief is a funny thing. It’s deeply personal and yet, somehow very public, and with every loss it’s slightly different. Sometimes, it pulls you inward while other times it pushes you toward others. I’ve found myself tearing up these past two weeks at the most random times, but I’ve also found myself smiling just as often. I’ve laughed at the stories shared by others and found comfort and joy in a community of hundreds of people gathering around our family to help us mourn and celebrate my Aunt Karen’s life. And come Saturday, the date of her 70th birthday, we’ll gather with family and friends to celebrate the person she was and the life she lived. I have no doubt there will be tears, but there will also be lots of laughs . . . and for good measure, prolific use of one of her favorite words . . . “morons” . . .
To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance
Ecclesiastes 3:1-4
Courtney's Contemplations . . . 