A really fine lady passed today. My last great aunt.
"Auntie" is what we called her, but in Mississippi it's pronounced "Aintie." She was 97, and until sometime in the last year she lived independently, a widow for many years.
She didn't do great things, but she was the most even tempered, welcoming, easygoing woman I've ever known. She was very smart, a voracious reader. When I was a little kid and lived in what wasn't the easiest or most bedrock household, her house was one I loved to visit. They had a nice little house, and a fine little dog, and things just seemed secure.
My grandmother, who did a good bit of our raising, was one of a bunch of kids, and now all of them are gone. They were characters, the lot of them, ranging from preachers to rounders, with quiet, stable Auntie in the middle.
May she cross easy. I doubt she knew how much she was loved. 
= new reply since forum marked as read
Frankly, my mother's parents were all kinds of mean crazy. We dealt with them as long as she was alive but when she died we all stopped associating with them. He was an only, and most "family" were these great aunts and uncles. They were decent, Mississippi cotton mill folks who left the mills and developed various careers. There were the bar owners (mine and another sister's), the preachers (two of the brothers) and a couple of businessmen, inc. the husband of Auntie. He repaired TVs and actually made a decent living at it.
I know I'm rambling. I'm reminiscing. Thanks for listening. 
But I'm betting she did know...
It's a good thing you had that refuge when you were growing up.
Safe passage to her...Hugs for you...
post edited. sorry.
I'm never offended by a sincere wish for comfort or a blessing. I've never understood why anyone would be. It's your language, and you were very sweet to offer it. No worries at all.
sounds like you have some good memories of her. i am so sorry for your loss
