In Memory of my Sister - Denise Dumoulin
Denise Dumoulin
My sister, Denise Dumoulin, lived life on her own terms. Even when we did physical battle as teenagers rolling around on our floor because she borrowed my clothes without asking, she remained completely unfazed. And, this story would totally amuse her daughters later in life since, in adulthood, my "baby sister" completely towered over me.
She was the quintessential horse woman and had won countless trophies and ribbons through her riding and exhibitions. Her two horses were aptly named "High Voltage" and "Jericho." On the one occasion that I agreed to go riding with her I sat on her horse, Jericho holding tightly to the reigns with white knuckles while she pranced circles around me on her wild other horse with the totally appropriate name.
We shared not only a bedroom, but also a love of rock and roll music. We listened together to The Beatles, The Allman Brothers, The Doors, and Jefferson Airplane among other bands and managed to crank up the volume of Led Zeppelin just enough to drive our mother to ear plugs.
While many of us get woozy at the sight of blood, Denise chose her vocation to be that of a nurse. She was someone who saw death, disease and illness on a daily basis and was there to hold onto a person in their weakest moment. She was a wonderful caregiver and helped so many people who were in need of her special brand of attention.
And who, but a sister, can recount with crystal clarity every event that happened in your childhood? Whenever I would mention a funny story from our past, she would always be able to fill in minute details that I had long forgotten. She even recalled word-for-word a number of French expressions from our grandparents that were completely hysterical. She possessed a memory that was extremely long.
My sister, Denise Dumoulin, lived in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and the photo here is of her last visit to Massachusetts. Between the two of us are her daughters on the day that we all went to lunch at her favorite place on Cape Cod, The Daniel Webster Inn.
Denise died a year ago this month following a brief illness and she is missed every single day.
To my sister, my friend,
With a special love that will never end.
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