Eulogy for Anne and Ed Travis – By Kit Muehlman
Opening
Thank you all for coming together to help say goodbye to our parents. It was such a surprise to learn how they left. Some of you saw the sensational and inaccurate headlines on newspapers and TVs. But the overwhelming response has been understanding and compassion.
When I was booking my bereavement flight, the agent was stunned to hear I’d lost both parents. He asked whether it was an accident. “No accident” I told him. …….. Then he said………. “your parents loved each other very much”…….
Mother and Daddy would have been married 60 years this Thanksgiving. They built a life with devotion and commitment and nurtured four children in faith and love.
Mother and Daddy truly cared for each other in sickness and in health. By leaving for the Great Beyond together, they sidestepped the .“till death… do us part”, clause.. May God receive them with boundless compassion and understanding.
Daddy was my hero, always a strong, steady presence. He was born into prominent family in North Carolina, but preferred to work behind the scenes calm, rational, and helpful. I could always rely on him………. Daddy could fix anything.
I’m going to tell a story for my brother, Edward now. When Edward was 8 or 10, he saw a squirrel get run over in the road, and ran home to tell Daddy about. Daddy asked when, and Edward said it was just now. Get it quick, Daddy told him. Now, we all thought Daddy could fix anything, so Edward ran to get the squirrel. Remember that Daddy grew up in farming country in North Carolina in the 20’s and 30’s and he knew what to do with squirrels. Edward brought the squirrel back, and Daddy skinned it, cooked it in the backyard, so Mother wouldn’t know………. and ate it. He was a very kind man, but also a practical one.
Daddy had an important job, designing factories and paper plants, and he enjoyed making and inventing things in the basement. He loved the outdoors, and he knew where all the food plants in the neighborhood were, persimmons, apples, pecans, and muscadine grapes. He loved walking his dog and meeting neighbors.
Daddy nursed Mother back to health after three nervous breakdowns. It must have taken everything he had during those times, to keep the family going, work, and maintain his marriage. I was 6 and 12, and I knew life was different, but had total trust that Daddy had everything under control.
Daddy had a quiet dignity, and we learned from him to trust life, to be content. He was so composed that when Mary was learning to drive, and in a huge, totally empty church parking lot. Well, she sideswiped a light pole, and Daddy didn’t scold, or say anything. We could count on him to be calm and kind. He lived his life with a sense of wonder and a sense of duty. I believe he has no regrets. He made the most of every day God gave him.
Mother and Daddy loved God and their Church. Mother grew up Methodist in Ohio, and became an Episcopalian when they moved to Atlanta.
We never doubted Mother loved us. She showered us with helpful suggestions, and more often than not, we’d have to admit she knew what she was talking about. She was a homemaker who was intellectually curious. She and Daddy read books and magazines every day. She didn’t enjoy cooking, but made wonderful traditional dinners, including our favorites, mashed potatoes and her awesome pound cake. Mother was dedicated to raising four children who could take care of themselves and make their own contributions to the world. Together, they sent all four children to college.
She nursed Daddy back to health after two near fatal accidents.
The second happened here at Holy Trinity about 10 years ago. Daddy was changing a light bulb and fell 28 feet to the marble floor. Some said angels had carried him down so that he survived. But he was seriously injured, and said there hadn’t been enough angels. When the doctors asked for a picture of him for his facial reconstruction, Mother said “I don’t know whether to bring a picture of Robert Redford or Paul Newman.
She lived simply and loved feeding birds, gardening, and creating beauty with needlework. One of her greatest passions was charity work, and she taught us it is better to give than to receive. She was an active elementary school parent, and played the fortune telling witch at my Girl Scout Halloween party - I didn’t know until years later. Among her papers was a long list of charities she supported, and she was a steady volunteer at churches. Prayer and studies of the nature of God sustained her. Her greatest passions were her life with Daddy, and her never ending love for her children and grandchildren.
Closing
I am so grateful for all that my parents taught me. From Daddy, I learned how to be practical, flexible, industrious and full of wonder. From Mother, I learned how to find beauty in everyday living, and to share my spirit with community. They were faith in action. May God receive them in everlasting peace and divine love.
Thank you all for your expressions of love and understanding and for your prayers and many kindnesses.
