Susan Lee Diedrick, 1941-2013

Last summer, we bumped into old friends as we entered the gate of the Great Minnesota Get-together, the State Fair. This was a happy meet up, we hadn't seen Sue and Dale Diedrick for many years and so we took some extra time under a leafy tree to pause and recall old times in Chaska, where Dale and Sue were Kathleen's long ago paint store landlords and where Stan and Kathleen often met, partied and dined at their popular Butch's Tavern and Restaurant on Chestnut Street.
Dale was navigating about the fairgrounds on a brand new pair of hips and he freely passed on plenty of advice and encouragement for Kathleen's brother. (Be sure to do all your exercises!) By that time Kathleen was doing quite well on her own new knee so the two could compare joints, the surgeon they happened to share, and their respective coaches. Stan and Sue just rolled their eyes at this exchange. We shared other news, mutual friends, vacations, retired life, and grandchildren, of course.
We're so glad we stopped that day and took our time and this picture. Eventually, after hugs and handshakes, we parted the sweet company of this happy retired couple, certain indeed that our paths would cross again. We promised each other that they would, then said good bye.
Back home, we posted the above photo and it wasn't long after that a serendipitous relationship was discovered. We got an email from Jennifer, our nephew Ford's wife. "That's Lucie's grandparents you have on your blog," she wrote. We were delighted by what we learned. Ford and Jennifer happen to live across the street from Dale and Sue's daughter,  Jodi, and her husband and their little daughter, Lucie. Lucie plays with Jennifer and Ford's daughter, four-year-old Kaia. Lucie and Kaia have enjoyed many fun outings at Dale and Sue's Lake Bavaria home in Victoria, as Lucie shares her grandparents with her playmate Kaia. We've seen them happy together many times on Jennifer and Ford's blog, but deduced nothing.
Now we just scratched our heads, thinking about how close we are in this world.
Monday we were stunned to learn that Sue had suddenly died at home, medical cause of death not immediately known, leaving a loving husband bereft and an extended family riven with grief.

We have returned today from a service in Victoria, where throngs gathered to pay respects and try to support a family shocked by the sudden loss of this vibrant soul.
The jolt of her passing has generated an appreciation for the tenuous, fragile threads of our lives and the importance of always stopping to hold what is dear. Sue and Dale's Lake Bavaria neighbor told us today, that the day before Sue died, she saw Sue jogging down the road as usual, a 72-year-old woman living life to the full.
We drove to Victoria to share our condolences with Dale and the four children today, wondering how they would bear this, knowing that the strength of their family would somehow uphold them.
It was a day for lessons, we thought about how important it is to take the time to make the call, take the picture, share some time; and we thought too about little Kaia and Lucie, as they come to understand why Lucie's grandma doesn't play with them anymore.