I didn't know.

I just found out today that one of my uncles, my Uncle Richard, passed away 6 months ago. It's very sad and heartbreaking, but it seems even worse to me because I wasn't told, and wasn't given the chance to say goodbye. He was an uncle by marriage. He married my aunt, and then she passed away 3 months later. It was very tragic, and it only got worse when my aunt's sister made it all about money. She hadn't changed the will after she was married, so everything was left to her sister. Well, my "aunt" saw nothing wrong with taking the money that she thought was hers, even though my new uncle's name was attached to it. She emptied their bank account, and took his house. It was very sad, and we don't speak to this aunt because of it.

Even though he was only my uncle for a short time, he was loved and was always an uncle in my heart. He was a wonderful man. I'm sad for his passing, and wishing that I had a chance to say goodbye. I didn't even know he was sick.

He didn't have family of his own, just some friends in northern Michigan. He was staying with them when he got sick, and eventually passed away. They didn't have any of our numbers, or even know who to contact. We only found out of his passing because a Christmas card that one of my aunts sent to him was returned with a note letting us know that he passed away in June. That's how we found out. No details, just that he was gone, and we weren't told. We didn't know.

Goodbye, Uncle Richard. I'll miss you.