7 / 24
The Pinecone
|
April 2015
• 7 •
Where to start and what should be said first, in telling a life
story? The opportunity to put into words a person’s past and
present is golden because it shapes the reader’s understanding – of
better knowing the individual, in a certain sense. So it is with this
story of Shirley Lynn. We begin with her heart-felt tribute to her
aged Mother, Hazel Lee Gupton. Hazel Gupton’s final years were
fraught with limitations and it was painful to watch the gradual
decline. Shirley wrote about a special dress and ornamental pin
she bought for her Mother; and the special occasions when that
dress and pin wrapped the Mother in special memories. The final
wearing was when her Mother passed away. Her tribute to her
Mother exemplified the love and thoughtfulness that were evident
in Shirley’s call to the ministry and her life’s work.
Shirley was one of 3 children of Hazel and Eulice Gupton. Her
Dad was a Chiropractor; Mom a homemaker. When she was 14
years old, Shirley met and “fell for” her future husband, Charles
Lynn, at church. Possibly, though, what also caught her eye was
Charles’ 1949 black Chevrolet convertible. When Shirley was 16
and Charles was 21, they eloped. They had 2 sons, Charles, Jr.
and William. As the years passed, their family grew to include 3
grandsons and a granddaughter.
Charles Lynn became an ordained Minister in the Methodist
Church, and their growing family adhered to the Methodist system
of belief. He passed away in 1972. Shirley attended Memphis
State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Professional
Studies, majoring in journalism. She then received a MA Degree
in Theology from Emory University in Atlanta, and became an
ordained Minister in the United Methodist Church; she served as
a staff Minister of the Christ United Methodist Church. Shirley
joined the Kirby Pines Retirement Community in 2013 when she
retired from active ministry. Her ministry continues, however,
in visiting Kirby Pines residents who are members of the Christ
United Methodist Church as well as those members who are in the
Kirby Pines Nursing Facilities.
The heart-felt love and admiration expressed for her Mother is
now shared with other infirmed ones who thrive under her careful
and caring eye. Love never dies. Shirley has shown this to be so.
-Jacqueline Besteman,
Resident
Below is Shirley’s published tribute to her mother........
The Jewel Colored Dress
Easter is permanent! proclaims tiny chick pinned to mom’s dress
by Shirley Lynn
When I saw it on the rack in Memphis, I knew she had to have it. The dress
was bright with jewel tones of blue, green and purple, a size four. She had been
a robust woman, but Parkinson’s disease was swiftly taking her body away.
The first time she wore the dress was in the fall. I stayed with her in Paducah
while I preached a revival at her home church 25 miles away.
She could barely walk unassisted. I helped her put on the jewel-colored dress
because she couldn’t always get her arms into the sleeves now. The ride was
difficult for her, but I was preaching and she had to go.
She sat attentively in the pew before me, her beautiful face set off by the
jewel-colored dress. Her eyes were full of pride in me, and my heart was full
of gratitude for her. Who could love you like that except your mother?
The next time she wore the jewel-colored dress was at Easter. We brought her
from the nursing home to my house for the day.
That December she had become too frail to live alone, and I moved her to
Memphis. Having to uproot her at 82 was almost more than I could bear. But
she bore it like a soldier, just as she had borne the suicide of her 42-year-old
daughter, the death of her only son at 39, and five years of nursing Daddy
through terminal cancer.
But now it was Easter Sunday, and she had asked to wear the jewel-colored
dress. She had tolerated the tugging as nursing home attendants dressed her,
gamely tried to walk while her grandson carried her into the house.
Inside, we gave her kisses and gifts, one a plastic Easter pin for fun. When the
string was pulled, a bright yellow chick popped out of the pink egg. She was
delighted and wanted me to pin it on the jewel-colored dress. I did.
The next time she wore the jewel-colored dress was for her burial in November.
I took it from the closet for the last time the night she died. I caressed the tiny
dress, the jewel colors, dimming through my tears.
How lonely I will be without her, I told God. How can I go on without her
love?
And then I saw it. Still pinned to the dress was the plastic Easter egg. I pulled
the string. The little chick popped brightly out of the egg. Of course, I am not
without her! Easter is permanent. And even now she sits among her loved
ones, adorned forever in the jewel-colored dress of God’s love.
A B E A U T I F U L S O U L
Shirley Lynn