Jan & Rob, Dee & Jim check their depth perception of history, and take a U.S. Citizenship test. 95.7% of all immigrants seeking naturalization citizenship pass this test. That number for natural-born citizens? Somewhat less. Would you pass? Did our panelists pass?
Thanks for listening. Share with your friends. Find this and more at cheynemusic.com/podcast.
Jan & Rob, Dee & Jim check their depth perception of history, and take a U.S. Citizenship test. 95.7% of all immigrants seeking naturalization citizenship pass this test. That number for natural-born citizens? Somewhat less. Would you pass? Did our panelists pass?
Thanks for listening. Share with your friends. Find this and more at cheynemusic.com/podcast.
MAKING OUR WAY - A McMahon/Cheyne Podcast
Citizenship 101 (Season 1; Episode 24) - 4/24/24
Today’s hosts:
Jan McMahon
Rob McMahon
Deanna Cheyne
Jim Cheyne
[music]
(voice-over)
Today we have two mini episodes to present, one on history and one on government. Starting with history. Can our crack team put familiar historical events in the correct chronological order? This proved trickier than we'd care to admit. Then on government, Dee, Jan and Rob take a U.S. citizenship test and find out if they get to stay in the country or if they have to pack up in need. Finally, this past weekend, we gathered in Chicago to remember and to honor a person very special to all of us. So let's get started. I won't tell you to put your thinking caps on because that kind of sounds like I thought you took them off once, which I don't want to think about. Well anyway, let's see how we do.
JIM
Okay, history, I'm going to name three things in history and I want you to put them in chronological order and then say which two of them are the closest together. Does that make sense?
JAN
Oh my gosh, yes, but it's going to hurt my head.
JIM
Okay, here they are. Cleopatra, the building of the pyramids at Giza, and today.
DEE
The building of the pyramids, Cleopatra and today?
JIM
That is correct. Now, Cleopatra, is she closer to the building of the pyramids or closer to today?
DEE
Today.
JIM
That's true. I looked this up because I didn't believe it. She's like Julius Caesar's time, right? So it's like 30 years before Christ and the pyramids are back about 2,500 years before that. And so she's closer to today. Let's put these in order. Today, building of the pyramids of Giza, and the extinction of the wooly mammoths.
DEE
I think the wooly mammoths and then the pyramids.
ROB
Mammoth pyramid today.
JIM
And then today. And then which would be closest? The building of the pyramids to the extinction of the mammoths, or the building of the pyramids closer to today?
DEE
The building of the pyramids are closer to today.
JIM
To today, extinction of the wooly mammoths?
DEE
Yeah.
JIM
The actual answer. First, the pyramids were built. Then the mammoths went extinct. And then today. The wooly mammoths went extinct about 2,000 years before Christ. About 500 years after the pyramids were built.
JAN
That’s amazing.
JIM
What are the differences between an African elephant and a wooly mammoth? What would you guess?
ROB
Wool.
JIM
That's right.
JAN
They’re hairy.
JIM
They’re hairy. They have two coats to project them against the cold. And the elephant - the African elephants ears are really big. Why?
JAN
To cool them.
DEE
To fan them?
JIM
To disperse heat. The mammoths ears were very small for the same reason. I thought that was pretty cool. T-Rex, Stegosaurus and today. This blew my mind.
ROB
I have to - it’s a toss up between T-Rex and Stegosaurus first.
JAN
T-Rex, Stegosaurus, today.
ROB
And I’ll say Stegosaurus, T-Rex, today.
JIM
Okay. And which is closer together? Today to whichever dinosaur you picked, or the distance between the two dinosaurs?
JAN
Well.
ROB
Which is closer? It's probably going to be between one of the dinosaurs and today.
JAN
That's what I'm thinking is true.
JIM
That's true. However, it was T-Rex that’s 20 - that’s 66 million years ago to about 70 million years ago. The Stegosaurus is another 75 before that. They never would have seen each other, except in certain museums in Kentucky.
Here we go. Oxford University, today, and the founding of the Aztec Empire.
JAN
Toh. In order.
JIM
Yep. Now, this is the founding…
JAN
Of Oxford.
JIM
…of Oxford, the founding of the Aztec Empire.
I don't know, but I'll go with Oxford Aztec today.
JIM
Oxford started teaching in 1091, officially recognized as a university in 1231. The Aztec Empire, surprisingly to me, was founded in 1428.
ROB
Really?
JIM
I had no idea.
ROB
That’s not... Wow.
JIM
No, it wasn't that long ago.
ROB
No.
JIM
There it was. When did - uh, John Tyler was born during Washington's presidency, right?
JAN
Okay.
JIM
Then he becomes president of the United States. When did his last grandchild pass away?
JAN
It’s recent. Because he had children when he was very old.
JIM
As did his son.
JAN
Okay. Well, there you go.
JIM
John Tyler's grandson is still alive.
JAN
Oh, okay.
JIM
This guy was born during Washington's presidency and his grandson is still alive. It's Harrison Ruffin Tyler - I mean, I didn't check the news this morning, but he was born in 1928 and he lives in Virginia. Long time. Let's do some wars, okay? Revolutionary War, okay? Let's do another one. The War of 1812. What comes next?
DEE
The Civil War?
JIM
Civil War? The Spanish-American War? World War I? And we'll stop there. Three of us were alive when the last veteran of one of those wars was alive. Which wars are they? We were alive during World War I veterans.
JAN
Yeah.
JIM
Yep. I've met some. In fact, the last one to pass away from - of all, was a woman from the Women's Air Corps in England. She died in 2012. World War I veteran died in 2012. Before that Spanish-American War, do you think we were alive during any of those veterans?
JAN
Yes, I do. We were.
JIM
Civil War.
JAN
Yes.
JIM
His name was Albert Woolson and he was at the Battle of Gettysburg. He died in 1956. Who was elected president when the last Civil War veteran's widow died?
JAN
I’m going to go with JFK.
JIM
JFK.
JAN
Yeah.
DEE
Nixon.
JIM
Nixon.
ROB
Um, Reagan.
JIM
The correct answer is Barack Obama.
JAN
That’s insane.
JIM
It is insane.
DEE
Oh.
JIM
What?
DEE
He married a young girl.
JIM
Yes, he did. In 1934, when he was 86 years old, he married a girl who was 19 years old.
ROB
Oh, geez.
DEE
What would have been the motivation?
JIM
She said the marriage was done due to poverty.
DEE
Okay.
JIM
So there was some sort of thing that she married someone and then she died after the election in 2008.
JAN
That’s insane.
JIM
Okay. One more bizarre one. In 1959, Samuel J. Seymour was a guest on the TV show, “I've Got a Secret” in 1959. What was his secret? Samuel J. Seymour.
JAN
Was he in politics?
JIM
No.
ROB
Was he a scientist?
JIM
No.
DEE
Was he related to someone famous?
JIM
No.
JAN
Was he an academic?
JIM
No.
JAN
Did he invent something?
JIM
Not that I know of.
JAN
Okay.
DEE
Can you give us a hint?
JIM
Yes. You would ask yourself, “Why would he be on a show called ‘I've Got a Secret’ if it's not for anything that he invented or his job?
DEE
He did something?
JIM
Closer.
ROB
Did he know someone who did something?
JIM
Not really.
DEE
Did he find something?
JIM
Not found something, but we're getting closer.
JAN
Did he…?
JIM
It's something he saw.
JAN
So I was just going to say, did he see something?
JIM
He saw something.
DEE
Did he see something that had been lost?
JIM
In a poetic sense, yes, but no.
JAN
Did he see somebody murdered?
JIM
Yes.
ROB
Did he see Lincoln murdered?
JIM
Yes.
JAN
Wow. Really.
JIM
When he was a kid - isn't that amazing? When he was a kid, his parents took him to see a play called Our American Cousin…
[music begins]
…at Ford's Theater on April 14th, 1865.
ROB
Wow.
JIM
Now when he's being questioned as it's revealed on the show, he has some things that he admits are kind of given memories because no one knows what's going on. So he doesn't know exactly what was going on, but he was there in the theater.
JAN
That's amazing. That's amazing.
JIM (voice-over)
Don't know much about history? How about government? To become a naturalized citizen of the United States, one must pass a basic citizenship test. Of those who try, an impressive 95.7% pass. 95.7%. Deanna is one of those. To be a natural born citizen of the United States, no citizenship test is required. But of those who do take one, the results are, well, take a guess.
How would you do on a citizenship test? Try one. A simple online search for a U.S. citizenship practice test will give you several options. We took the one provided by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. It's found at uscis.gov. Look under the citizenship menu. How did our panel do? Well, our one naturalized citizen saved our score on this one.
JIM
All right, now here comes the biggie. Are we ready? Dee, what did you become a United States citizen?
DEE
In 2005.
JIM
2005. And when you were there, what did you have - Jan and Rob came in support. We were there. What did you experience that day?
DEE
A large room full of people from all over the world.
JIM
They said something about 250 countries were represented in that mass service. What else do you remember about that ceremony?
DEE
We had to raise our right hand and repeat certain things.
JIM
Certain things. Right. Who was president at the time?
DEE
George W. Bush.
JIM
George W. Bush. He had a message for you. That was nice.
DEE
Yeah.
JIM
They sand a song. Do you remember what that song was?
DEE
Was it “God Bless America”?
JIM
No, it was the old biblical hymn “God Bless the USA.”
DEE
Oh, right.
ROB
Did they really?Oh.
JAN
Woooooowww.
JIM
And people actually [singing] “stood up” at the right time.
ROB
Oh, gosh.
JIM
Yeah, it was that. You were here under a work visa.
DEE
Yeah.
JIM
And then when you were applying for your green card, and from time to time, when we would go down to Argentina, you would have to get what was called an advanced parole that allowed you to leave the country and come back in for this work visa.
DEE
Yes.
JIM
And one time you went for the advanced parole and what happened?
DEE
They handed me a letter saying that I had 30 days to leave the country because I had failed to do something in my process for applying for a green card.
JIM
So this is a Tuesday. We get this news - because we're just ready to go to Argentina - we get this news that you have to leave the country. So I'm thinking, “Okay, we're moving to Canada.”
DEE
Right.
JIM
That would be fine. And what happened next?
DEE
Well…
JIM
What was it they said that you had failed to do?
DEE
They said that I had failed to get my fingerprinting done. And I knew I had, and I had my receipt from that visit. And luckily, we had an attorney working for us who I contacted and faxed her the copy of my receipt.
JIM
So the government is not going to admit that they made a mistake. There's no way to reopen your case. Once they cancel it, they sent you that letter. Your case is gone. So what do they have to do?
DEE
Okay. The attorney said, I'm going to let them know that they made the mistake and just hope and pray that we can get somewhere, but she couldn't guarantee anything. Anyways, after she did whatever she did, she called me back and she said, “Can you get to the U.S. immigration office in 30 minutes? If you can, they're going to just issue you a green card.”
JIM
Just leapfrog over the whole process.
DEE
Yes.
JIM
You called me. I was at the time - I was at the band director's office in the Clearwater Corps kind of assembling some things…
DEE
Yes.
JIM
Thinking, “Okay, time to pack up and go.” And you said, can you get there in 30 minutes? And I'm thinking, “Clearwater to the Tampa airport. I can do that.”
DEE
Yes.
JIM
That's just nearby the airport. There was an interview with a Marine colonel where he was trying to explain to you how…
DEE
…why I needed to become a citizen after getting my green card.
JIM
The United States was so much better than Canada.
DEE
Right.
JIM
I remember him saying that.
DEE
Yes.
ROB
Oh my gosh.
DEE
Oh yeah.
JIM
So you become a citizen and you passed your naturalization test.
DEE
Yes, I did. With flying colors.
JIM
With flying colors, as do 95.7[%] of those seeking citizenship. Meanwhile, those who became citizens by being born here - I like to call them anchor babies [laughter] - what percentage of natural born U.S. citizens would pass a basic multiple choice U.S. citizenship test? That number stands at 36%.
ROB
Yup. I believe that.
JIM
36%. For those of us in the room who are 65 and older, we are in the highest scoring percentile, 74%. Only 19% of test takers who are 45 and younger passed. Okay?
JAN
Yeah.
JIM
Here are some of those Jay-Walking type results. Only 13% knew when the U.S. Constitution was adopted. When was the U.S. Constitution adopted?
JAN
1787.
JIM
1787. 60% did not know which countries the U.S. fought against in World War II. Dee, can you name a country we fought against in World War II?
DEE
Germany?
JIM
Ja, wohl. 57% did not know how many justices are on the Supreme Court.
JAN
Nine.
JIM
Nine as number nine or are you saying “no” in Germany?
JAN
Oh, no, I'm saying there are nine.
JIM
Okay. 72% of respondents either incorrectly identified or were unsure of which states were part of the original 13. Do you want to try and run them down?
JAN
Sure.
JIM
Okay. Which way? South to North? North to South?
JAN
Let's go South to North.
JIM
That's easier.
JAN
Georgia.
JIM
Georgia.
JAN
South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia…
ROB
Virginia.
JAN
Maryland.
JIM
Maryland. One, two, three, four, five. Well, you got five.
ROB
Delaware.
JAN
Pennsylvania.
JIM
Pennsylvania. Delaware.
ROB
Delaware.
JIM
Six and seven.
JAN
New York.
JIM
Eight.
JAN
New Hampshire.
JIM
Nine.
ROB
New Jersey. Ten.
JAN
Oh yeah, New Jersey.
ROB
Connecticut.
ROB
Massachusetts.
JIM
That's right. Connecticut.
ROB
Massachusetts.
JAN
Massachusetts.
JIM
Massachusetts, and…
JAN
Rhode Island.
JIM
Rhode Island. And Maine was then part of…?
ROB
Newfoundland.
[laughter]
JIM
So those were the 13. And that's better than 72 percent. Only 24 percent could correctly identify one thing Benjamin Franklin was famous for.
JAN
Oh my gosh. Libraries.
JIM
37 - libraries. U.S. diplomat. 37 percent thought he invented the light bulb.
JAN
Okay.
JIM
Only 24 percent of those taking this test could tell why the colonists were fighting the British.
JAN
Taxes without representation.
JIM
And while most knew the cause of the Cold War, 2 percent said it was due to climate change.
JAN
Oh, my gosh.
JIM
Isn’t that fun? We're going to take a test.
ROB
You’re kidding me.
JIM
I have a 20 question test…
JAN
Okay.
JIM
…for us. This is multiple choice. We can discuss it. And are we ready?
JAN
Yes. We're discussing.
JIM
We're going to get all 20 of these.
JAN
Okay.
JIM
Okay? Number one. Name one right only for a United States citizen. Here are the four choices. Attend public school. Freedom of religion. Run for federal office. Freedom of speech.
JAN
Run for federal office.
ROB
Federal office.
JIM
That is correct.
DEE
But they can run to be a senator, can't they?
JIM
That's a federal office.
DEE
So if I wanted to run for senator of Florida, I would not be eligible?
JIM
Yes, you would.
DEE
Yeah?
JAN
You’re a citizen.
JIM
You’re a citizen.
DEE
Oh, I'm okay. I was thinking natural born citizen.
JIM
Nope.
DEE
Okay.
JIM
That one's for president.
DEE
Right, right, right.
JIM
That's why Schwarzenegger had to say, “Nein.”
DEE
Yes.
JIM
Who is the current Chief Justice of the United States? The choices are Joe Biden, Anthony Kennedy, John G. Roberts, Jr., and Barack Obama.
ROB
Robert.
JAN
Roberts.
JIM
Roberts. That is correct. Next question. Under our constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? A, provide schooling and education. B, provide protection like police. C, declare war. D, issue driver's licenses.
DEE
Declare war.
ROB
Declare war.
JIM
Declare war is correct. Four, what do we call the first 10 amendments to the constitution? The four choices are the inalienable rights, the declaration of independence, the bill of rights, the articles of confederation.
ROB
The bill of rights.
DEE
The bill of rights.
JIM
The bill of rights is correct. Next one. Question five. What are two cabinet level positions? Okay. Here are some choices. Secretary of weather and secretary of energy. B, secretary of the interior and secretary of history. C, secretary of health and human services and secretary of the Navy. And D, secretary of state and secretary of labor.
JAN
D.
ROB
D.
DEE
D.
JIM
D is correct. What did the emancipation proclamation do? A, gave the United States independence from Great Britain. B, freed slaves in most southern states. C, gave women the right to vote. And D, ended World War I.
JAN, ROB, & DEE
B.
JIM
That was right. What is the capital of the United States? Philadelphia, Washington, Boston, New York.
JAN
Washington.
ROB
DC.
DEE
DC.
JIM
That's correct. How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
JAN, ROB, & DEE
Nine.
JIM
Ja. Nine. What did Susan B. Anthony do? Founded the Red Cross, fought for women's rights, first woman elected to the House of Representatives, and made the first flag of the United States.
JAN & DEE
B.
ROB
Fought for women's rights.
JIM
Fought for women's rights. 36% could pass this. Who is in charge of the executive branch? Is it the prime minister, the chief justice, the president, or the speaker of the House?
DEE
The president.
ROB
President.
JAN
President.
JIM
All right. When must all men register for the selective service? Is it at age 16? Is it between 18 and 26? Is it men do not have to register? Or is it at any age?
DEE
18 to 26.
ROB
C. They don't have to.
JIM
We've got a split decision, Jan. You have to decide.
JAN
They no longer have to register, right?
JIM
The correct answer is between the ages of 18 and 26.
JAN
So they’re still…
JIM
They still have to register.
JAN
I did not know that.
JIM
I didn't either.
ROB
What?
JAN
I thought that ended.
JIM
That's right. “All men must register for the selective service between the ages of 18 and 26. When you register, you tell the government you can serve in the military if necessary. Selective service was used in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War…”
ROB
Wow.
JIM
“The government calls this the draft. The United States does not have a draft now. You do not have to serve in the military unless you want to.” But you still have to register.
ROB
I did not know that.
JAN
I would have argued about that. Okay.
JIM
Do you remember doing that, Rob?
ROB
No.
JAN
You did.
ROB
Oh, I know. I had to, but I don't remember doing it.
JIM
Do you remember your classification?
ROB
I remember that my number was - I remember that it became moot because they did away with it.
JIM
It was about that time.
ROB
Yeah.
JIM
So we would have registered in '73. Yeah, I was 4F or F4, whatever it was. That generally you said an academic future.
ROB
I don't know.
JAN
It is actually true.
JIM
You didn't want an A1.
JAN
“Failure to register is a felony.”
JIM
Yep. And there's things like that where I don't know how the government makes sure you know what is supposed to happen.
ROB
It must happen automatically somehow.
JAN
I’m thinking they notify you, just like they do for Social Security.
ROB
Yeah.
JIM
Yeah. But that's the thing. How does the government know that you have been informed that this has to happen? You know, it's just word of mouth or what? All right. What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy? Here's choice A. The two things are write to a newspaper, and call senators and representatives. Here's choice B with two things. Give an elected official your opinion on an issue, and join a community group. C, all of these answers. And D, vote and join a civic group.
DEE
I would say all of these answers.
JIM
All of these answers is correct. I always knew when taking a test, a multiple choice test, they would give you four choices. You'd have to pick one, four choices and pick one, four… When you finally fit that first question that had an all of the above on it?
DEE
It's always, always.
JIM
That was probably the answer.
DEE
Right.
JIM
If you didn't study for the test and you got to know a trick, that's one of the tricks. Name one war fought the United States in the 1900s. Okay? The 1900s. Civil war, Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and World War I.
JAN & ROB
World War I.
JIM
There you go. Who signs bills to become laws? Is it the secretary of state, the vice president, the president or the chief justice of the Supreme Court?
JAN
The president.
ROB
The president.
JIM
Good job. What is one promise you make when you become a citizen of the United States? Dee? What's one promise that you make? You will A, disobey the laws of the United States. B, give up loyalty to other countries. C, never travel outside the United States. And D, you will, you promise not to defend the constitution and the law of the United States.
DEE
B.
JIM
When was the US constitution written? 1790, 1787, 1789 or 1776?
JAN
1787.
JIM
On September 17th. And what territory did the United States buy from France in 1803, Hawaii or Louisiana territory or Alaska or Quebec?
JAN & DEE
Louisiana.
ROB
The Louisiana Purchase.
JIM
How old do citizens have to be to vote for president?
DEE
18.
JIM
16 and older, 18 and older, 35 and older, or 21 and older?
JAN
18.
ROB
Should be 16 and older. Should be.
JIM
Why?
JIM
I think.
JAN
You should be what?
ROB
16 and older. I think it should be.
JIM
Why?
ROB
I just think, at that age, a kid in high school should be able to vote.
JIM
Should be able to vote?
ROB
Yeah.
JIM
When we were kids, just before high school, the age was 21.
ROB
Yeah.
JIM
Do you remember the argument used to move it down to 18?
JAN
The draft.
JIM
The idea was…
ROB
They’re good enough to go to war.
JIM
You can go to war for your country, you can vote for who's going to send you there. So that was the 26th amendment that changed that. So it's 18 is the current standard - law. Name one branch or part of the government, state government, Congress, parliament, United Nations.
JAN, ROB, & DEE
Congress.
JIM
And the last question, we're right now 19 and 0. Let's go for 20. When do we celebrate Independence Day? June 30th, March 4th, July 4th or January 1st?
ROB & DEE
July 4th.
JIM
That's correct. We got them all right. Well done. So, but that is an amazing thing. We've got this, this time coming up where we have to vote and some people don't even know how their government works.
ROB
I know.
DEE
I know that's what…
JIM
But they know what they like. Yeah. With the demise of the president, who takes over? Vice president. Oh
JIM
Vice president is right. Who takes over after, who's next in line of succession? And the answer is not Kiefer Sutherland.
JAN
No, it’s Speaker of the House.
ROB
Speaker of the House.
JIM
Speaker of the house. Who's next?
ROB
President Pro Tem of the Senate.
JIM
That's right. And do you know who's next?
ROB
Secretary of state.
JIM
That's right. And do you know who's next?
ROB
No.
JIM
Okay. Of those first five, today, how many of them are women?
JAN
Oh, one.
ROB
Wait.
JAN
Wait, say them all again. Vice president.
DEE
Yes, it is.
JAN
One. Who am I missing?
ROB
Secretary of state. Yeah, one.
JIM
There are three. The vice president. The president pro tem is Patty Murray.
ROB & DEE
Oh.
JAN
Oh, I forgot about…
JIM
The secretary of the treasury.
DEE
Oh, yeah.
JIM
Of the first 10, half of them are women. And, of all 18 positions in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, the 18 positions named, eight of them are women.
JAN
You need to go back. Is treasury five?
JIM
Treasury is number five.
JAN
Okay.
JIM
Then it's defense. That's a guy. Attorney general. That's a guy. Secretary of the interior is a woman and a native American. Deb Haaland. Agriculture is a guy. Commerce is Gina Raimondo. Labor is Julie Su. Then we've got a guy for health and human services. Then in housing urban development, Adrianne Todman. Uh, transportation is Pete. Uh, energy is Jennifer…
ROB
Jennifer Granholm.
JIM
…Granholm, yeah. And then the rest are guys. So we have eight out of our 18 in line for president are women.
DEE
Senate pro tem, that's not an elected official though, is it?
JIM
No, it's in the constitution as a stipulation in case, uh, the vice president who is the presiding officer of the Senate is unable to preside. Then the president - the Senate chooses somebody. It could be anybody in the country, but they typically choose a senator, and it's typically from the majority party. And that's how it is. And she doesn't have much to do except some record keeping. She's not allowed to cast a deciding vote in the way the vice president is, but that's, that's the president pro tem.
[music]
JIM (voice-over)
Finally, we experienced an unwelcome milestone recently. Lieutenant Colonel Marjorie Cheyne - Aunt Midge - passed away after an extended illness. Jan and I first lost our grandparents, and then our parents, and all our uncles and aunts. Aunt Midge was the latest, and the last. We traveled to Chicago this past weekend to celebrate her life and to be with her children, Craig and Barbara, and their families and with friends. Jan posted a tribute to Aunt Midge on Facebook. I asked Jan for her permission to read it to you now.
“We celebrated the life of my Aunt Midge Cheyne today. Barbara and Craig have lost their mom. Their kids have lost their grandmother. Andrew and Chelsea's girls have lost their great-grandmother. It is truly the end of a generation. In the midst of the loss, we had the best time together as family remembering the gifts she gave us.
“For me, she was Aunt Midge after knowing her for well, 70 years, I can say with assurance, everyone needs an Aunt Midge. That's the long and short of it. Everyone needs a person in their life who smiles whenever they see you, who laughs easily, who has a good enough sense of humor to laugh at themselves without it being false modesty. That was my Aunt Midge. I never entered her presence without being greeted with a warm smile that went all the way to her eyes. And I never left without being sore from laughing and wishing I had just a bit more time.
“She had that effect on people. Whenever I encountered her in a group setting, there seemed to be laughter. I'm pretty sure everyone loved Midge Cheyne. If you tell me otherwise, I won't believe it. To me, Midge was forever young, at least until these last few months. She simply didn't age. I watched for clues as to how this could be true, and I think it was simply her spirit. She didn't take herself too seriously, even in the midst of some who did. Those may be the most important lessons for me. Let my smile and laughter be genuine and don't take myself too seriously. Barb and Jon made sure that Rob and I were able to visit with Midge this past August. She was failing them, but she still managed to smile all the way to her eyes. How grateful I am for her influence in my life and in the life of so many I know. I will miss her laugh. I will miss her spirit. I will miss how I felt in her presence.”
Thank you, Jan. The memories of the times we spent with Aunt Midge will linger on in our hearts. Until next time.
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