Marshall A. Hayes, III

This Labor Day will be a little different. We will be driving early in the morning to attend the funeral of my Uncle Chick. If you follow this blog, you know that my dad's family is very close. I grew up around almost all of my 5 aunts and uncles and a plethora of cousins, many of whom are to this day some of my closest friends, not just family. 

Uncle Chick was my dad's oldest sibling and the first to pass away. He has been battling Alzheimer's Disease for a few years now, so we all know it's a blessing that he is now with Jesus and has his mind back in order, full of wonderful memories, thoughts and now full of visions of God. How amazing that must be!

Nanny, Aunt Sharon and Uncle Chick

But for those of us still here, it hurts. It's hard to know he is gone. It's hard to know one of the Hayes siblings has passed away. It stinks for my cousins Marcie and David who have lost their mom, a step-mom and now their dad in the last few years. It is rough on my second cousins who have lost two grandmothers and two grandfathers now in the last few years.

Uncle Chick and his kids and families

I am thankful for the memories we all still have to keep with us, though.  Early memories include him smiling when we would call him "Uncle Chicken" thinking we were such funny little cousins :-)  One of my later memories of Uncle Chick was when J was born.  As you know, he was born 3 months early because I had HELLP syndrome (severe toxemia).  He was also born a few weeks before Christmas in 1998.  So while we were staying at the Ronald McDonald house, my parents called from the annual Hayes Christmas gathering at their house so I could say hi to some family.  Uncle Chick was the first on the phone and it broke me.  Not in a bad way, but in a "We are so amazingly blessed and loved by this family" kind of way.  He was so loving on the phone with me and I pray I don't ever forget this memory.  He always had a smile on his face, had Paw Paw's laugh (most of the Hayes siblings do), and loved us all.  Uncle Chick was also the one in the family to trace our Dunagan roots (Nanny's side of the family) back to Scotland.  He loved genealogy, he and my Uncle Lowell have been at it for years now, finding out wonderful information.   They even spurred mom on to work on her family genealogy.

Taken during a visit a couple of years ago while Dad and I were on our way back from Waco.  Uncle Chick was already to the point of not remembering us well and wasn't speaking much but he still smiled :-)

So we are saying goodbye to Uncle Chick here on earth but in our hearts, we know we will see him again and it will be glorious.