My 80-year old sister!

My oldest sister, Maizie, turned 80 on Monday. I am so sorry I was not able to be part of the celebrations. The whole clan had a surprise dinner for her on Sunday. I happened to call my daughter on her cellphone exactly as they were starting and I was able to listen to the beginning stuff, like the prayers, and my sister's response.
You would not believe her age if you saw her. She is so young. She still plays golf and travels all over the place. The only continent she has not visited is Antartica, and she says about that 'you never know'! She was a representative in our government in the 80's and then a senator.
Here is an article in our newspaper about what took place on her birthday, the next day.
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BARKER-WELCH MARKS 80 IN STYLE

Date September 18, 2007
Brief
by MELISSA WICKHAM

DEMOCRATIC LABOUR PARTY (DLP) stalwart Maizie Barker-Welch celebrated her 80th birthday in style yesterday.
Her children made her feel like a queen from the time she awoke, with breakfast in bed, after which she was chauffeured to the prestigious Sandy Lane spa, pampered with a manicure and pedicure, treated to tea at Chatter's Room in the afternoon and then taken to dinner.
When the DAILY NATION visited her at her Accommodation Road, Bush Hall, St Michael home, a beaming Barker-Welch looked more like a young 60-year-old.
"I don't know how it feels to be turning 80. I don't know how that feels at all," she said, laughing.
The birthday girl was not forgotten by the women of the DLP who presented her with a hamper.
Undene Whittaker, Patricia Inniss, Irene Sandiford-Garner and Dr Esther Byer-Suckoo all wished a happy birthday to the woman whom they all called their mentor.

Role model
"The DLP ladies are showing our appreciation to Maizie Barker who is our stalwart woman defender and advocate in the DLP. She has been our role model over time . . . .
"We feel it is well deserved today to show our appreciation of Maizie and to wish her the very best wishes and a much longer time in the DLP so we can use her as our model because we have learned quite a lot from her," said Whittaker.
DLP candidate for St Andrew, Sandiford-Garner, said Barker-Welch carried out her political duties with a finesse, grace and class that other female politicians in the Caribbean would do well to emulate.
Patricia Inniss, the DLP's St Michael North-East candidate, said although there had been a lot of talk about "the young versus the old" in the DLP camp in the past, Barker-Welch had shown that both young and old could work together for the benefit of the party.

"This is such a big surprise for me. It touched me greatly because I think of these four female candidates all the time. I am working out all the various things I would like to tell them. I think we have in these four really special women who can make a difference. To think on my 80th birthday, God has so blessed me that I am able to be with them," she said.
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It would take me a lot of time to tell you about this amazing sister of mine. She is extremely intelligent, speaks French and Spanish fluently. And the thing is that we never lived together. She was married before I was born and has a son my age! There are 22 years between us but you would not think so if you saw her. Here is a recent picture of her which doesn't even do her justice.