(Excerpt from journal entries in 1997 after a momentous Hawaii vacation culminating in a ‘Tiger Cruise’ on the Kitty Hawk (CV-63) with her oldest daughter.)

So many wonderful moments that made my life so rewarding.  I  was filled with a tremendous feeling of gratitude.  I don’t think of myself as anything but an ordinary woman.  But I do think that I am extra-ordinary in one way, and that is in the deep appreciation for all the loving, caring people in my life.   And five of them are my very own children.  I also have memories of my romantic passionate life with their father.  He filled my life with laughter and fun, made me happy and caused me great sadness, but that is what life is all about.  I truly appreciate the ups and realize the downs have taught me many important lessons.  There are maybe two or three things I wished I had never done this lifetime, but now as I look back on my life…I realize that it was all meant to be just as it was – mistakes and all.

So to whoever reads this message, myself included, I can honestly say with an open heart and mind that I am very proud to be the mother of my (children).  Wendy is about to retire from the Navy.  Dorrie has come a long way and done a great job with herself and so have her children.  And Karen created for herself the family and the home she always dreamed as a child.  Craig is a proud firefighter.  All of them are now married (Rob and Rosie were together but no longer.)  All my grandchildren are beautiful and healthy people.  My life is passing by so swiftly.  But I’ve great memories and it is these thoughts that sustain me when I am alone…

Love is what life is all about.  I have been blessed with lots of love in my life.

Thank you God, I am forever grateful.

In Light and Love, Doris Eileen Paine Roberts