Great Aunt Em...

A wonderful little lost soul…. Who I dearly loved. She would braid my hair, make apple sauce for me… and taught me how to get rid of hiccups by taking a teaspoon of sugar and then drink down a full glass of water…

Auntie Em was a lost soul because as a young girl she got married and was deserted shortly after… in the early 1900’s it was common for men of royalty, of lost kingdoms to come to United States and marry rich girls. Thusly getting to live the life styles he was use to before his kingdom fell. Vanderbilt’s family had one of their daughters marry such a man. Most of the time the mother picks out these gentlemen(?)..hoping their daughters will be addressed as Princess. Some times the gentlemen(of question) would come to America seeking his own rich young lady.

Such a man, did come to Newport to find what he thought was a rich girl.
That girl was my Aunt Em. But when he figured out that Aunt Em’s family was not rich, just was well off enough to have a nice home and etc. He left before the dawn of light. Aunt Em sat on the curb for many days, waiting for her Prince to come back…he never did. And Aunt Em was never right after that… But she was the sweetest of Aunts. She died at the age of 96, after falling down the stairs at
An institution… My mother said she died of a broken heart and she thought the nurses were rough with her. As in her elder age I suspect she had what we now call Alzheimer’s, and fought with them.. She died about 2 weeks after getting there.

But my memories are of her waking me up from my nap. My mother would go get Aunt Em when she was canning. As Aunt Em loved to can fruit and such.
I would be woken up by her stroking my hair. She loved to brush it and braid it.

Aunt Em loved ribbon candy. And that is what my mother and I would bring to her each year for Christmas. And the last time I saw her alive, she was 95, long gray hair, down to her waist, and long fingernails… she was living with her sister in law. She was getting hard for her to handle. But that Christmas, she looked at the ribbon candy, and then at me… and took her hand and stroked my hair…just like old times… and we both smiled..