Norma June Clark

My life began in a four-room home on a farm in Butler County, Kansas, about five miles southwest of the town of Burns. It was the 16th of June 1928. I was the first child of George and Alice (Waggy) Wilber. My mother used to say she didn’t remember much at all about her younger years. she said, “I guess I was like Topsy, I just grew.” A brother came along a little later, we called him Ralph. As I write this he lives in Mesa, Arizona. A sister soon followed him. She was named Joyce. Sadly, she died in 2005 of heart failure. A few years following Joyce, we got another sister named Karen. What would I do today without her? She is a joy to me. So thoughtful to me and others. The last one to come along in our family was brother Ray. He was only three when I was married and sadly, he passed away of cancer in 2012. My high school sweetheart and I were married July 3, 1945, in the Methodist Church in Richmond, CA. Virgil E. Clark was then in the U.S. Navy in World War II. The war finally ended, and we began our married life together. We were both young and weren’t very educated on married life. One lives and learns and that we did. I sometimes wondered how he could put up with me and I’m sure he had the same thoughts. Tempest Fugits and much older and a great deal wiser, I hope. We were proud parents of five children daughter Janice (Jerry) McConnell, son Charlie (Debbie) Clark, daughter Gail (Phil) Topham, son Tom (Jamie) Clark and last not least daughter Alisa (Brian) McDowell. There are twelve grandchildren Steve McConnell, Shawn McConnell, Jeri Renae McConnell Wells, Chris Clark, Mike Clark, Jenny Topham Flaming, Melissa Topham Zuno, Danielle Clark Sturtz, Josh Clark, Elaina Clark Byer, Alexandra Holm McDowell Grunewald, and Rylie McDowell Kuhn and 26 great grandchildren and 6 great great grandchildren. I love them all. The favorite things I liked throughout my lifetime were reading, sewing, boys, printing, and drawing; my parents, my siblings, and most of all my husband, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren. I lost my life companion Virgil Clark in March 2015. Life has taught me many things, being a good Christian, and loving others, be they friend or foe. Having a forgiving nature (both of those are not easy and I fail at them often), honesty, perseverance, even in hard times when the going gets tough. I do believe having a great sense of humor takes one far. A good laugh is priceless, especially at one’s self. Each moment is a precious jewel, to hold, with fond delights, to treasure it’s radiance, while it is still in sight. We must not plan our happiness on dreams set far away or wish that one might turn again to paths of yesterday. A moment passed is not reclaimed, for coffers filled with gold and none of us can chart the course that future days may hold, the moment that is here and now asks that we give our best of love and understanding and of cheers and helpfulness. Each moment is a precious jewel, to hold with fond delight, for all too quickly moments pass forever from our sight. I leave you with these thoughts; there is usually always a silver lining to every cloud. A smile and a laugh and a hug go a long way. Keep your trust in the Lord and He will see you through anything. I hope to see all of you, one day again.