Maxine Johnson (1928 – 2017) was one of those special people that quietly, selflessly helps hold the world together. She finished her work this week. Few people model wife, mother, friend, and neighbor with such grace. If you knew her, you looked up to her and loved her.
It’s worth recounting some of the ways she lived as encouragement for those of us left to carry on without her example.
Friend: She befriended me when I had nothing to offer but needs. She cared for my baby, so I could work when she was long past deserving of spending time as she pleased. She remained a special friend for seventeen years.
Loving: She never judged or criticized. She encouraged, hugged, smiled, helped carry your load without complaint or expectation.
Fruitful: She never “retired” or stopped learning and giving. For as long as her body allowed, she carried on with the work of life in her home and for civic organizations without accolade. Up until the last days of her life, she crocheted doilies in lovely colors and with intricacy, giving them away.
Selfless: She put others before herself and therefore was free to truly love. She gave much and asked little. Her thoughts were always toward others and their needs and feelings.
Beautiful: She put on her best and presented herself with dignity. Blessed with brilliant red hair and bright blue eyes, she lit up every place. But it was her internal beauty that radiated out, which enhanced those natural attributes.
Kind: She’d overcome or endured many hard things so was able to empathize with others and treat everyone with kindness.
Truthful: She had the gift of speaking the truth in love.
If you knew Maxine, it seemed as if you knew an angel. She was just a human like us, but one who chose to live the way Christ calls us all to live. If you ever wondered what a true Christian looks like, Maxine Johnson is your answer. There’s something in the life of Maxine Johnson worth emulating for us all.