In Memory of FairAnna

[BooksAdmin]

In Loving Memory

Anna Alexander  
 SeniorLearn Poetry Discussion Leader  and dear Friend

Our Fairanna passed away on June 14, 2011. She will be greatly missed.

View some photos of Anna with SeniorLearn Friends

Anna's obituary

Anna's essays and poems

can it be? summer is nearly gone?  
the dog days of August are upon us  
and Autumn waits to sing her song
the day light hours are less  
morning arrives a bit later  
and evening comes too soon  
spring green leaves have deepened  
now heavy their darker brow  
throws a dusky shadow  
upon the grass aged lawn
hidden in the dogwood bough
berries of bitter green  
wait the cool of autumn  
to bring forth their scarlet gowns
each day ancient leaves of gold  
whisper their last good-byes  
and flutter to the ground  
there is no joy in their passing  
though I welcome cooler days
nights beneath cold etched stars  
my soul prepares to slumber  
like bulbs beneath the ground  
tentatively it hopes  
in spring it will awaken  
among the verdant grass  
in Eden's hallowed ground  

anna alexander  7/28/01

[MaryPage]

I knew Anna and am deeply grieved to hear of her death.  She was a very cheery person, despite her profound deafness.  Very intellectual, a wonderful poet, a very loyal friend, and a great cook.  She adored her family and her late husband.

We met in Fredericksburg, Virginia at a Senior Net mini-bash that Jean Lockwood had set up in a tea shoppe there.  Robby was there, and Richard (died years ago) and several others.  We met after that in various places around Virginia.  In September 2000 I moved to Annapolis to be near a larger number of my family. I never saw Anna again, though we kept in touch until recently.

God speed, Dear Friend and Beautiful Soul.
 
  
 

[Tomereader1]

Didn't know Anna personally, only through SN and SeniorLearn.  Her lovely poems brought me to tears more than once, and I loved her courage and spunkiness!   Heaven has a bright new Angel!

[ANNIE]

We will all miss dear Anna.  She was a very special person.  I will never forget all the cooking she and Eloise did when we rented that big old house on the beach.  And Robbie was the only man there.  What a ball we had that week.
Anna was a friend to one of my neighbors here in Gahanna, OH, and had visited Pat in previous years.   They were Air Force wives whose husbands were pilots.  They lived in the same block and spent many times together while raising their children.  I brought Anna pictures of Pat and her grown children when we SN visited D.C..
 Oh, Anna, you will be so missed but I am glad that I knew you while you served this site and over on SN.  Prayers for you and your family (of which we consider ourselves a part).

[pedln]

Anna was a hostess with the mostess, and it was treat to visit her because she made you feel so welcome.  From the tales she told I know that many benefitted from her wonderful hospitality.  Nothing fazed her.  Someone from far away was coming East for two different conferences.  Could she stay inbetween times with Anna?  Of course, so what if they two months apart.  Another friend from the West Coast was visiting Anna and the east coast for the first time.  “What would you like to see while you’re here in the east,” asked Anna.  “Graceland,” answered her guest.  And they hopped in the car and went.  It didn’t matter that it was 600 miles away in Nashville.  It’s no wonder everybody loved because she had a heart as big as the world that opened up to so many.  We will miss her

[BarbStAubrey]

Two poems our fairanna sent to me when I needed them the most - since the lump does not leave my throat I must need them again and maybe you need them as well.

A Question for you
 
When Autumn comes shall I gather  
Her jewels fallen to the ground?
Pack each one in a box and send them
Off to you? What will you think  
When you open and find them there?
Topaz from the tulip tree, garnet and ruby  
Sparkling in the sun. Waiting to be gathered  
Before they dry and blow away.
Will you remember me as I remember you?
Your address I no longer know,
Where did you go when we said goodbye?
How can I reach you? What number can I call
When summer says goodbye and I say hello to fall?
 
anna alexander
August 5, 2003

New Beginnings

Somewhere between yesterday and tomorrow
Lies a door, closed tight and latched.
It hinges rusting, holes patched.
The doorknob gone, the keyhole plugged
No light shines there, the lamp is out.
Standing in the vestibule of today's doubt
I peer through the dimly dark ,
See another door , hear a steady din
Voices whisper, softly shout , invite me in!
Looking one last time, a final backward glance
At the old door, the portal to my past
Hesitant I pause , throw the dice, cast
My lot. Place my hand against tomorrow's gate
My journey still ahead,my life incomplete
Reborn, a Phoenix rising from the blackened heap
Of ashes buried deep. Lifting my head, I face
The dawning day, the starting place.
Impatient now to see the morning star
Raise my voice in joyous singings
Embrace the land of new beginnings.

anna alexander 12/18/96

[JoanK]

My friendship with Anna meant so much to me -- her loss leaves a big hole in my heart.

She would call me, late at night in Virginia, knowing it was evening in California, and we would talk for hours about anything and everything. Then she would say "I'm going to hang up now". Fiftenn minutes later, while still talking, she would say "Didn't I say I was going to hang up?" "Yes, but I didn't believe you!" I would reply. No matter how many times we did this, it would break both of us up."


And the cookies!! She knew I LOVED her ccookies (who doesn't?), especially her shortbread. She would say "I'm going to bake you some cookies", and my mouth would start to water. A few days later "I baked you some cookies, I'm going to send them to you but I'm waiting for ....." "Don't wait" I'd say -- I knew what was going to happen. But to no avail. A few days later "So-and-so was over and ate some of your cookies. But there are plenty left". By this time, I knew I was doomed. Later "I couldn't not give some to such-and-such, but I'll bake you another batch". "OK", I bravely said. When you have a friend who loves so many people, you know you have to wait your turn.

But when they did arrive,  aaaahhh.

And her poems, she'd share liberally. "Want to hear what I wrote today?" "Yes, yes" I'd say. I love her poems. I hope there is some way they can be published.

We never met face to face. We tried, when she was in California, but couldn't swing it. Once I suggested that we both get "Skype" and have a video phone call. "Oh" she said, "then I'd have to put on my makeup, do my hair, dress up ---" as if I would have cared. Her smile was more important to me than any thing makeup could do.

"My family used to say "I know you've been talking to Anna. You're yelling!" Sometimes, she could hear me fine, sometimes it was hard. but no matter how bad her hearing was that day, when I said "I love you", she always understood me. I can't tell you what her phone calls meant to me, moving 3000 miles away from all my friends. I knew that friendship was stronger than distance.

[kiwilady]

Its very sad for me to come in here today and read that Anna is gone. She was a clever and lovely lady. She will be missed. So many bookies gone.

Rest In peace Anna.

Carolyn

[ginny]

I am so sorry to hear of Anna's passing. She was an extraordinary person in many ways and how she absolutely loved her children and grandchildren!!  All of her conversations to me  centered on her family. I think she was the one who got us started on the idea of cooking at our Books at the  Beach trip and everybody then pitched in, which made it truly a trip to remember.  

A plaque over one of the bookcases in the beach house  said "Memories," and that's what we're all feeling today. I am finding her close in her own poetry, what a wonderful way to remember her.

Barbara has put some of her poems here and also in the Poetry section and  I have found them to be extremely evocative, here's another one:

DUST   MOTES  

captured by a random ray of light  
trickling through a torn and shattered shade  
a corps de ballet of dust motes  
gracefully took flight
they floated in the bright beam  
dressed in tiny twinkling gowns  
their pirouettes their leaps  
defying gravity it would seem  
alas the sun removed its golden ray  
abandoned them to a dim drab grey  
impoverished them along with me  
left us  
 h
 a
 n
 g
 i
 n
  g  
on a dreary day

anna alexander  Oct 14,2000 all rights reserved

That's a lovely thing, so like her in her ability to appreciate the smallest elements,   and isn't it wonderful to hear once more her voice through poetry? We will truly miss Anna who brightened all our lives. My condolences to her family in their great loss.

[JoanP]

Anna and SeniorLearn go way back to SeniorNet days.  She came one of the early gathering s at the National Book Festival in Washington DC in 2000.  -  No one there will ever forget  her excitement at meeting her online friends for the first time.  She kept sayng  she couldn't get over her luck at finding us.  Her joy was contagious.  She brought that joi de vivre into all of her posts - and as you can see - in her poetry.

It's hard to say goodbye.  .  A few months ago when Anna received the news of her declining health, the SeniorLearn DLs sent her some orchids, which she has always loved, used to raise.  Here is part of her note that she sent - hopefully her words will bring some comfort to you as they did for  us.  

 " I never know how to end something ..I won't say goodbye because that would mean I would never see you or hear from you and you will always be in my thoughts  AND I BELIEVE I WILL SEE YOU ALL AGAIN. GOD BLESS AND KNOW YOU ARE SPECIAL....EVER, Anna"

Anna, we won't say goodbye either - we believe we will see you again - You will always be with us here.

[kiwilady]

That message of Annas made me cry. What an amazing wonderful lady she was.
'
Carolyn

[gingerw]

I remember Fairanna from many SN gathering. Her
cooking for us at the Isle of Palms. Thanks for the
memories Anna. See you soon. Agappe Love, Ginger

[anneo]

I had to reregister, so long since I had been here, but could not let FairAnna's passing go without acknowledging her friendship.

We became friends on seniornet in 2004, me the peanut from downunder, Anna the pecan nut from Virginia. Went overseas for the first time in 2005 and had a week with Anna, which was then and still is one of the great pleasures of my life.

Too often people just speak pleasantly of those who are past, but Anna was a genuinely good person, with a heart that seemed to expand as required, to fit new people in and give them her uncritical love.

Vale Anna

[hats]

All of you knew Anna so much better than I knew her. I want to respect your pain. I don't want to say too much or too little. I can say Anna was a Lady with a capital "L." From the very beginning she treated me special. I always wondered why. It was like she looked beyond me. When she talked, I knew she knew the whole me. She wrote special poems in emails written to me. She shared her paintings. She shared the loving memories of her husband. She always talked about the children she loved. She talked about her daughter.  She sent me seashells. She called me on the telephone more than once. Since Anna was deaf, our telephone conversations were a little difficult. On a few telephone calls we laughed heartily. The last one was really difficult. She couldn't understand me. I couldn't understand her. As I write this I am crying because a special lady has passed away. Anna was a darling. She was a woman who saw beyond race, religion or any other boundaries. She only wanted to give her love and make others comfortable. People say God doesn't make any junk. Anna believed it. No one was without worth to her. If I were asked what did she do with her life, I would say she loved and loved and loved and loved again. I will miss her.

[kiwilady]

Hats that is a wonderful tribute to Anna.

Carolyn

[JoanP]

In Loving Memory

Anna Alexander  
 SeniorLearn Poetry Discussion Leader  and dear Friend

Our Fairanna passed away on June 14, 2011. She will be greatly missed.

can it be? summer is nearly gone?  
the dog days of August are upon us  
and Autumn waits to sing her song
the day light hours are less  
morning arrives a bit later  
and evening comes too soon  
spring green leaves have deepened  
now heavy their darker brow  
throws a dusky shadow  
upon the grass aged lawn
hidden in the dogwood bough
berries of bitter green  
wait the cool of autumn  
to bring forth their scarlet gowns
each day ancient leaves of gold  
whisper their last good-byes  
and flutter to the ground  
there is no joy in their passing  
though I welcome cooler days
nights beneath cold etched stars  
my soul prepares to slumber  
like bulbs beneath the ground  
tentatively it hopes  
in spring it will awaken  
among the verdant grass  
in Eden's hallowed ground  

anna alexander  7/28/01

[JoanP]

I printed out all of your comments from June, when Anna passed away, and wrapped them around a single rose.   I thought it was important that the family knew that I was there for all of you.  There were approximately 20 people attending the burial service - nearly all family members.
 
I wish you could have heard the comments on how much SeniorNet/SeniorLearn had meant to Anna. Her daughter spoke of how Anna had learned to use the computer back when SeniorNet had been part of AOL...how determined she was to learn this new technology.  They went on to say what a godsend her ability to use the computer to communicate with her children and grandchildren as her hearing faded.

It was an uplifting ceremony...one of Anna's poems written in memory of her husband at the time of his death, was read aloud.  Col. Robert Alexander had served in the Air Force during World War II.  When he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery 17 years ago, there was no memorial for the Air Force.  Imagine the pleasant surprise for the family to find that the Air Force memorial built in 2005 can be seen from the grave site.  If you look closely behind the tree to the left, you might be able to see the top of the three steel spires representing the three core values of the Air Force and the bomb burst flight manuever.

 Anna's family was all so gracious, so grateful and kind to me for coming - to all of you for being such an important part of Anna's life. Though there were tears, their spirits lifted as they shared many MOM stories and memories afterward.  It will take time, but they seem to share Anna's spirit. Her daughter kept the print-out of your comments, the rose was buried with Anna.  May she rest in peace.

[ChazzW]

Sorry to hear of the passing of FairAnna. I remember her as a gentle soul.