WEBSTER,  Thelma Betty

What a beautiful lady .
I had the honor of serving her food and drinks at Marco Polo. She had such a big heart and always smiled when I walked in and we always had a good chat .
Passing her room and knowing she is no longer there makes my heart sad . But I’m glad she is no longer suffering and at peace .

30 years thelma had been my mother in law . Our realationship wasn’t always on the best of terms but we did connect in a way that was our way . Being similar both out spoken , head strong and at times no speech filter .
She was grandmother to our three children but mostly the mother to a man I’ve always loved dearly .
Thelma would often tell me in the later years that she loved me often looking me straight in the eye and say ” you do know I love you don’t you?”
I think my cooking won her over . I could always rely on her for an honest opinion on my latest baking frenzy or the newest dinner recipes I often took over for her to try .
We never sugar coated any of our conversations which sometimes led to heated debates but lots of jokes and words of wisdom .
I don’t think we truly became the typical mother in law daughter in law couple not in a traditional expected way but we certainly had our way .
It wasn’t until the last year’s that we became closer . Thelma feel in love with our senior dog scruff man . Scruff man became a frequent visitor to her house before she moved into the nursing home . She would sit on her lounge chair and have a great old playful conversation with him . Each phone call either started or ended with her asking ” how’s scruffy? ” I guess to many this would seen insignificant yet in all the years I’d known Thelma and all the pets she’d ever met scruff man was the only one I’d ever known her to interact with .
Watching the two of them carry on was special . There was a true unconditional love when those two got together .
Unlike other family members Thelma didn’t play a big part of our early years . Although always welcome and she always knew she was I guess in some ways she didn’t feel we needed her as much . She was always in the background checking in and up on us .
I will tell anyone reading this ..Thelma was the most luckiest woman to ever play and win at bingo I’ve ever known . !!! I can remember sitting with her playing bingo and while I struggled to keep up with my bingo books she was playing two lots haha . No word of a lie she left every time with enough meat trays to start her own butcher shop .
While I never met her first husband John I did meet Kevin . Those two were peas in a pod . I’d never seen them argue not once and the way they looked at each it was as if a mills and boon book was being played out in front of me . But honestly being in the car with those two was a scary experience . Thelma never drove but she did announce every traffic light , stop sign and every corner was announced well in advance hahaha . Thinking back I guess I knew thelma more than I realised . And while I can’t write everything here I have had time to reflect . Ive been long considered the black sheep among her family Thelma and I shared moments that will forever be OUR moments . In some ways I guess it was our game our way of having our own special realationship.
But she was and always will be my husband’s mother . She was and always will be grandmother to our three children and Nanna to scruff man .