Sophia

Last week our sweet Sophia went home to be with the Lord. Although she was 94, she was in very good health and we were caught off guard by her passing. We loved Sophia, Sophia loved us, but Sophia adored our little Taylor. Every time we would take Taylor over to see Sophia she would say "just look at her, she is such an amazing child!" Sophia was not able to have children of her own and therefore I think Taylor filled a small void in her heart over the past year.
There is no doubt in our minds that the Lord led us to Fort Myers so that we could be Sophia's neighbors. We learned so much from this wise, intelligent, and kind woman. We were astonished at her quick wit, her constant day trading, her conservative political views (she was from Pennsylvania), her incredible generosity, her memory, her life story, and her unselfishness with everyone in her life.
Up until the last couple of years Sophia was a snow bird who would spend her summers in Pennsylvania and her winters here. When she was down here she would go to the grocery store several times a week and would split much of her produce with us, as she always said "this is way too much for one person". When she found out that Pete had a hard time sleeping she insisted on bringing him cherries every other day because " they have high levels of melatonin" she would say. Sophia had a large part in making sure Taylor was receiving all of the fruits and vegetables she needed while inside of me.
Eventually Sophia was not permitted to drive any more, only after failing the driving test because she rolled through the stop sign, "no one was coming, there was no need to stop all the way", she said to the "mean old man" who told her she had failed the test. Pete, and sometimes I, would drive her to the grocery store and to her doctor appointments. On these outings we were able to talk to Sophia about her life and all the many things that she had learned and accomplished (for example, receiving her masters degree from Carnegie Mellon in Library Sciences).
Although we knew how much we loved Sophia, I was not prepared for the great loss that I have felt knowing that she will not be coming over to ring our doorbell, will not be sneaking out in the morning to get her paper, will not be feeding Flash chicken through the fence, will not be waving at Taylor, will not be putting down a pint of vanilla bean ice cream a day and that we will not be able to talk with her when we want. We were blessed beyond words by this incredible lady and she will be dearly missed by many!