Tuesday, March 2, 2021
/public-file/220/Ultra/4ad307c3-2f18-4509-abf8-093033b254a5.jpg
MILDRED MARY MCKNIGHT, Milley, as she liked to be called, was a perfectionist. This was evident in her dedication to Heather, her home, her appearance, and her employment. Life was challenging, but she faced it with determination, and was supported through the years by a dedicated extended family.
Heather's welfare was the driving motivation behind her desire to work hard and put money aside for Heather's future. This, she accomplished with flying colours. Although, her penchant for collecting Royal Doulton figurines, fine china and jewellry captured her attention at times.
Preparing to go to a family gathering or to church, every strand of hair and seam had to be perfectly positioned, all the while balancing on high heels.
She was a beauty!
Pride in the appearance of her home both inside and out set up some interesting challenges for minor irritations with a few neighbours who, at times, took some dark delight in immature provocations regarding grass, snow or weeds. She was a perfectionist, to a fault.
Often it only took a warm smile to lighten up her anxious brow.
She would say to me (Ron), when visiting her, "I suppose my place is the worst looking on the street!" And I would respond with the usual, "Yes, Aunt Mildred, I don't know how you can live in such a hovel!" to which she'd break into a huge sheepish grin, knowing that she'd been exposed, fishing for a compliment.
She did have a reputation as a good cook, with her oldest sister. Some of her nieces still use her tea biscuit and pumpkin pie recepies to this day.
She was a diligent, hard worker. Peterborough's, Outboard Marine valued her work ethic, and dexterity. On the assembly line she was as swift and accurate as the best of her colleagues. This employment gave her a good income.
She did have a deep-seated understanding that life was tenuous. In an emergecy she and David were rescued from their Peterborough home, due to a faulty furnace, which had filled the house with deadly carbon monoxide fumes.
In Mildred's possessions was her Bible. In the front, it indicated that it had been given to a young Mildred Black of Napanee. No one remembered that she had lived in napanee. On another page was a handwritten note. The note reads,
"March 18, 1990 attended People’s Church where Rev. Paul Smith was preaching, and made a concrete decision for Christ."
Aunt Mildred, as the last of your generation, you have joined your family, and are now peacefully in the arms of a gracious loving Saviour who has welcomed you ... and has always understood you completely. RIP
