My Quiet Place


Thursday, January 7, 2010

Bruce Dean Brunkow 1971-2005

This year Bruce and I would have been married 10 years. Wow! 10 years. We had been married for about six years when he passed away. It was a very long six years. We spent a lot of time in the hospital and fighting doctors. Even though there were hard times we were in love. Bruce was my first love. He always made me feel special and he truly cared about me.


The night Bruce asked me to marry him he took me to a small park in St. Joe. We had been there for a few hours. As the sun went down I could tell he was up to something because I was cold and he was acting weird. He finally did it. He got down on his knee and asked me. Of course I said yes. He gave me a beautiful ring with our birthstones on each side of the diamond. He was so excited when he got the ring that he wasn't about to wait.

Bruce was a man of many talents. He was a chef in the kitchen. Bruce did wonderful things with food. He made the best brisket I have ever tasted. I haven't had brisket that tasted like his since. Bruce was also born with two green thumbs. I could look at a plant and kill it, while he could cut a piece of a plant off and grow a whole bush from it. Bruce also was very mechanically inclined. He was always changing things on his car, adding new lights and fixing things that probably didn't need to be changed. He was really into medicine and would watch any show that he could see an operation preformed. He drove the doctors crazy with all his questions and the fact the he actually knew what he was talking about.

Bruce and I had grand plans.(What is the saying, Life happens while your making plans) We wanted to buy a house, travel, and have a family. Bruce's health problems put our plans on hold. We were unable to buy a house. We did do some traveling that we enjoyed. During the last year we were asked to adopt a baby of on of my students parents. We were so excited! We were sure it was a gift from God. Bruce was so funny to watch. We fitted the car seat in the car. After I came back inside, Bruce stayed outside and kept checking it. The month before Bruce passed our baby girl was born and passed away two days later. We never got to see her or hold her. Bruce's heart was broken. It was right before Christmas. That was the worst Christmas we ever had.

Some great things about Bruce:
He had an evil look when he was up to nothing good.
He was a great cook.
He loved children and animals.
He got very excited to open gifts on his birthday or at Christmas.
He loved Christmas and Christmas music.
He was a caring person who would anything for anyone.
and there was so much more!!!



I miss Bruce everyday. It is hard for me to go through a day without having many reminders of him, the smell of his cologne, the way someone walks or just a song on the radio. I cherished everyday I had with Bruce I have no regrets from our life together. I will miss him always and treasure the time with had together.

May Bruce and his baby girl, Mariska, rest in Peace.

A man as good as Bruce was should never be forgotten.
If you knew Bruce and what to share something about him please leave it in a comment.