Having attended a funeral this past week for a dear family friend, I was reminded of an obituary found in the Afterword of one of my favorite books.
Magnolia Wynn LeGuin's death was deeply felt by all who knew her, as her obituary in the Henry County Weekly Advertiser (12 November 1947) proclaimed with simple elegance.
Our hearts were pierced with pain and yet, relief mingled together when word came that Mrs. G.G. LeGuin, familiarly know as "Miss Mag," had moved to the "Home not built with hands," a reward she so richly deserved, for such a beautiful life she had lived!
She was a loving mother, devoted wife, friend to humanity, a good, kind neighbor, and indeed a true and faithful christian, if there ever was one. We know nothing too good to speak or write of her. To know her was to love her. These words were equally fitting for her while she lived as they are now. No one knows just how many lives were enriched nor how many blessings she rendered.
Mrs. LeGuin was before her marriage, Magnolia Wynn, and spent her life at old Wynn's Mill where she was born. She was in her 79th year. She loved people, loved to talk and loved old New Hope Methodist Church where she will be missed as the oldest member and where she has been a pillar. Many think of her as their "second mother."
This book is shelved in my genealogy section not because I am directly related to Mrs. LeGuin but because her diaries offer insight into the lives of my great-grandmothers.
This is lovely! As is your blog, and as are you. Thanks for sharing this!
ReplyDeleteI really loved this book. I couldn't imagine staying at home as much as she did. It was a different world then, that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteYes, staying within 15 miles of home is an anomaly for today's woman; and that type of confinement was not reflective of my recently departed friend.
ReplyDeleteThe LeGuin story was just such a window into what life might have been like for some of my ancestors that I really soaked it up.
That does sound intriguing. Thank you for recommending it.
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