my neighbor died last night
I was horseback when I got the call. Since she was a rancher too that seemed fitting. She and I were the two Arizona representatives in book on women in agriculture that was published this year. I last saw her in early October when her son brought her along on an errand to deliver a cow and calf of ours he picked up with some of his on a third neighbor's place. She had been getting pretty forgetful over the last year or two, but in some ways it was ok for her. She used to get really worked up about political things. She was an old fashioned flag waving republican and during the Clinton administration she could get really hard to visit with. Lately all of that was gone and she was so happy to visit, even if you could kind of tell she wasn't sure who you were. It was the peaceful version of that old-fashioned term "second childhood."
She stopped cooking for everybody and just enjoyed taking it easy for the first time in 50 or 60 years.
When she dressed up she would wear red lipstick and she had a great voice and a loud laugh somewhat like my own. My sister always said Peggy reminded her of Katherine Hepburn.
She was honored as a local celebrity in the nearby town's annual Rex Allen Days festival also in October and rode in the parade. I wish I could have made it to that.
She had chest pains the night before New Years Eve and they took her to the local hospital which then flew her to Tucson. By the time she got there she was feeling fine and the decision was made to keep her overnight for observation. As her son and daughter-in-law were getting ready to leave the whole emergency crew came marching into her room because they had received electronic signals she was in trouble, only she was insisting she was fine. The chest pain was gone. She got through the night ok and was to have some procedure the next day but it almost got canceled due to no further signs of trouble when the same thing happened as the night before - she was feeling fine and ready to leave when the machinery detected problems. Well they went in and found a 99% blockage and popped that back open just in time. Shipped her to a closer rehab place and the last I had talked to anybody they were expecting to bring her home this week.
When her son called today he said they brought her home yesterday. She made it home. When he went to see her this morning she was gone. Oh what a cool lady she was. What a grand life she lived. What good neighbors they have been. Rescued me countless times. We got into it over politics sometimes but it never stopped me from loving and admiring the old broad. She was something else. May the grass be tall and green and the calves fat and frisky (and Herefords) where you have gone.
= new reply since forum marked as read
May we all go so easily...
She sure sounded like a cool old dame, indeed.
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Email if you want or need to.
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A ranch neighbor is so much more than a city neighbor.
PS, thanks for not making your headline read: Peggy has passed.
