OK, here's my story. My dead ex-husband (not in that order) and I
were married in Bismarck, ND on June 2 of 1973. The plan was that we
were going to get married, stay in the hotel that night, have brunch
in the morning with all the out of towners and drive to Minneapolis
and then on to Ohio. My father in law to be, however, had a heart
attack in the pool at the Holiday Inn and ended up in the ICU three
hours before the ceremony. (Which went along as planned.)

We ended up not going to Cleveland to see the rest of John's family
until August. Did summer theatre at a teeny tiny little theater on
this side of the Canadian border near Bottineau, ND. ( I directed John
in Moliere's "Imaginary Invalid" and we played Adam and Eve in "The
Apple Tree".) By the time we got to Cleveland, John's dad had a
pacemaker and was much better. The marriage lasted almost 14 years.

During this period several significant things happened. President Ford
signed the papers which created the Cuyahoga National Recreation area
on land which borders John's family home in Brecksville on three
sides. In-laws signed papers deeding said property to the park (after
the parents deaths). We adopted our daughter in 1982 and in the early
spring of 1986 when she was 4, her Grandpa died.

Being a most practical man with a most practical wife, they had
decided to sprinkle his ashes down the side of the hill at the edge
of their property (park land). When they did that (in the fall) MIL
decided to put his ashes in a big basket with 100+ daffodil bulbs.
The MIL, John, his twin sister Jane, their younger sister Sally and
brother Fred and three grandkids (ours and two of Sal's) sprinkled
the ashes and the bulbs all down the hillside with the stand of 200
year old oak trees planted by Moses Cleveland (you remember him -
Grover's daddy.) They buried the bulbs. The next spring the whole
hillside came up daffodils. (Eat your heart out Wordsworth.)

John's twin sister died in 1992 and they sprinkled her ashes there
too. Then in 1995 John died. (We had been divorced for several years
but had continued to co-parent and spend time together with Carolyn
and we never stopped performing with each other.

The last thing John did was to direct "Our Town" and the kid and I
were both in it. We were supposed to perform it in Manitoba six weeks
after we closed for a little community theater festival. During the
week before we were to go, John died - in the middle of 'pick up'
rehearsals. His mom and his sister and brother came from Ohio. We had
his funeral in the theater - on the stage with the ladders from "Our
Town". It was the funniest funeral I've ever seen and I only hope
people laugh half as much at my funeral. I wish we'd taped it. They
sprinkled John's ashes down the hillside too.

Now I am almost 60. People in my family don't live to be very old. By
the time my mother was my age, she'd been dead for two years! Carolyn
has promised that when I die, she will take my ashes to Ohio, sneak
out to the oak trees (Grammy's still living there!) and sprinkle my
ashes with her dad's. Then that SOB will have to put up with my
presence throughout eternity! It ain't over till the fat lady sings
and I will get the last laugh.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Lynn from Fargo