Jordan Rivers - The Natural Grouch Face

In A World Of Darkness, She is My Light

Aunt Roe holding a gnome I got her

My Aunt Roe has always been an icon in the family. She changes her style almost every year and you never know what to expect. At the moment she has chin length, grayish purple hair, almost the color of lavender. She has an absolutely divine curly texture but she straightens it everyday. You'll never see her with undone hair, however she has started to take a liking to the curls and so have I. She loves to go shopping and her closet just keeps growing. She always refers to the commercial, "Too much stuff, not enough space." She has a very tacky style sometimes and I could never be caught dead in what she can find. She is quite the character, always fun to be around and jokes easily. She is also very understanding and has helped me a lot. I'm forever grateful.

In 2011, I lost my mom to Leukemia and my father was never in my life so I was alone and passed around to different family members. Aunt Roe was always there to do fun things with me and to have an otherwise normal childhood when with her. I would spend summers at her house and it was honestly the best. She would take me places such as Lake Tibias, which she can never remember if its Tibias Lake or Lake Tibias. She'll repeat to herself "LT" to try and remember but she never does.

Aunt Roe has such a good sense of humor and we can laugh for hours. She does silly things and even though they are small, they crack me up. She has her FAVORITE recliner in the middle of the living room and as soon as she sits in that chair she's out like a light. I honestly don't know how she does it but she claims the chair is just that comfy. Every night we'll watch a movie or show and she will 100% fall asleep while watching it. She is also hard of hearing so she holds the speaker to her ear so she can hear better. Most of the time I will find her asleep hugging the speaker to her head. I wake her up with my laughing most nights.

She loves all things gnome. If Uncle Dennis (Aunt Roe's husband) would let her, she would probably change the house theme to gnomes. She already has quite the collection of gnomes and I also help contribute to it. There is a corner of the house that her gnomes call home, and it continues to grow. She also really likes sloths and has a giant stuffed animal of one that sits right outside of the bathroom. I couldn't tell you how many times it scared my socks off. She was looking into seeing a sloth and getting to interact with one, however it costs about $400 so her dream to hold a sloth will never see the day of light.

For every holiday she loves to bake and I like to help her. She is very by the book and will follow directions to a t. She's really not good at doing what feels right because she is a terrible judge and will turn things into a disaster. She kept all of her mother's recipes and uses most of them for what she bakes. We'll bake Funny Cake, Forgotten cookies, Pizzelles, etc. These recipes are actually quite difficult and my Aunt Roe still hasn't mastered them when she has been making them for years. However, she still enjoys baking more than anything. 

December has to be the best month for baking because she goes wild.

Our Christmas cookies

"Christmas is a great time to bake lots of goods", my Aunt Roe says as an excuse to make junk food.


We bake all throughout the year, but Christmas is when we make enough    to feed the whole town.


"Grab sugar, flour, vanilla, and milk! Sprinkles, frosting, cookie cutters,    and food dye!" she shouts, dancing around to Christmas music.


The excitement of Christmas makes her a crazed gnome starving for the      joyous holiday spirit. She bakes all day and eats all night. The best start of  the day is turning the oven on to the perfect 345F and grabbing her favorite  recipes and new ones she found online.


"Wake up! It's time to bake!" Aunt Roe shakes with delight as we are about to begin the fun.


Once all the ingredients are out she begins to whip them together faster than I can count to one.


"This is the best part! Decorating!" she jumps at the sprinkles and food dye to design the cookies.


When they are decorated to her satisfactions she pops them in the oven and waits the longest most agonizing ten minutes for them to cook. They finally are done and she can't wait to see the finished product. She pulls them out and they are the most beautifully ugly cookies you'll ever see. She is not an ounce disappointed and enjoys them as they come.

Aunt Roe can really light up a room. She is so cheerful and lively, it brings everyone around her joy. Growing up she was just the person I needed to keep me out of the dark and she still is. When the shutdown happened in early 2019, I went through a lot. I was in an abusive household and when I had nowhere else to go, she took me in. When no one else listened to me, she did. Although we have our difference and argue from time to time, she is always there for me. In a world of darkness, she is my light.

Aunt Roe and I out to eat at Dairy Queen