My dear sister Rose unexpectedly passed away on March 22, 2016. Losing her devastated me. I was in bad shape mentally for quite a long time. I tried to bounce back on my own, but thank goodness my friends helped me recover. To this day, I still grieve for her. She and I were very close. 

We grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana, surrounded by a loving, close-knit family of fantastic Cajun cooks. Rose learned the culinary secrets from our mother and grandmother, both skilled cooks. I always watched Rose cook and paid close attention to how she prepared our favorite family dishes. Gumbo, spicy jambalaya, or other famous New Orleans dishes frequently graced our family table.  

While in the Army, I would take time off from my duty location and head to New Orleans to see her for Mardi Gras every year. 

Visiting her after Hurricane Katrina had devastated our city was heartbreaking and very difficult. 

In August 2006, I took a flight from Germany to New Orleans to visit Rose. I knew she would be at the airport to meet me as usual. As the plane descended and approached the runway to land, I looked out the plane’s window. The miles and miles of massive destruction I saw over much of the area almost broke me. It looked like a war zone. When I got off the plane, Rose was waiting for me. I ran to her, fell into her arms, and cried. I didn’t need to tell her why. She knew I couldn’t bear seeing our beloved city in ruins. 

She wiped away my tears with a Kleenex and kept her arms around me for comfort. We went to the baggage claim area to get my luggage. Then she took me to her car. During the drive, we talked about our plans for my stay. 

As we drove from the airport through the outskirts of New Orleans into the heart of the city, I was shocked by the extent of the destruction. Katrina spared nothing. Just about everything was in shambles. Residences, apartment complexes, churches, commercial buildings, and businesses were completely leveled. Piles of debris filled the areas where the structures once stood. Growing up in New Orleans, we had survived countless hurricanes before. But Katrina was different. It was the big one we feared would come. I seriously doubted that my city would ever recover.

Despite the shock of the devastation to my city, the spirit of Mardi Gras was in our DNA, so our plans to celebrate prevailed. We always had so much fun.

When we arrived at her apartment, and as soon as she opened the door, I could smell my favorite dish: spicy red beans and rice with Italian smoked sausage. That dish warmed my heart. I was home again.

While there, Rose cooked other special dishes for me. She knew I loved her seafood gumbo the best. She cooked it perfectly, making sure it was well-seasoned and spicy like I liked it! 

Even the breakfasts she prepared especially for me always made me smile. She cooked scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, toast, and grits, which she knew I loved. She served me like I was a special guest at a five-star hotel. I was spoiled.

Rose was extremely considerate, and I will never forget that. When I was in the Army, she often mailed care packages to me from time to time. This became a ritual for her. No matter where I was stationed, she sent me all kinds of delicious, decadent treats from New Orleans. Some packages included several bags of Camellia Red Beans, a popular local brand in New Orleans. I could never cook them as well as Rose did, so I seldom tried. I still have two bags left from all the ones she sent me. I store them in one of my kitchen drawers with other staple items. 

Her care packages also included banana-flavored Now and Laters, a taffy candy that I loved but could not get in Germany. 

Extremely thoughtful, Rose always sent me cards for my birthday, Mother’s Day, Christmas, and Easter. Sometimes she would send me a card just to thank me for being her sister.

I remember one outrageous thing she did with love that still makes me laugh. When I was stationed in Heidelberg, Germany, I received a notification from our personnel section. They told me I had an urgent message from the Red Cross. Immediately, I thought the worst. I received a message from Rose through our Louisiana congressman. Her message was that she was worried about me because she had not heard from me in a while. So, regardless of how busy I was with my military duties, that Red Cross message was my cue to write or call her more often.

One day after coming home from shopping, I went to my kitchen and put my bags on the counter. I went to my sink to get some hand soap to wash my hands. But something on the edge of the sink caught my eye. On my counter was One. Red. Bean!

I stared at it for a few seconds because it was odd to see it there. I knew I hadn’t taken any of my bags of red beans out recently. But just to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind, I opened the drawer where I stored my bags of red beans. I had to remove several other items to get to them in the back of the drawer. I pulled out one zip-lock bag and then the other. I examined them both to make sure I hadn’t opened any of them by mistake. Both the bags were intact. Neither had been touched. So, to my relief, I hadn’t lost my marbles. But that was when I knew Rose had visited me while I was away. She left me one red bean on my counter to let me know she was there.

Finding that one red bean warmed my heart and comforted me so much to know Rose is still watching over me.