A Tribute to a Centenarian

Margaret Alice Doyle nee Gale (1905-2010)


On April 28, 2010, Margaret Alice Doyle-Gale in her 105th year “slipped the surly bonds of earth… to touch the Face of God” (John Gillespie Magee, Jr.,) joining her husband, Paul and other relatives in the heavenly realm. Probably a more appropriate quote is by Cuthbert Hicks who wrote, “for I have danced the streets of heaven and touched the face of God.”

Those who knew Aunt Maggie knew that she loved to dance. She kept telling everyone that she retired officially from dancing at the age of 84! I often watched her do a little jig when her type of music was played. On her 104th birthday, she danced a few steps with a smile on her face for all who came to help her celebrate in her own home.

Independent and proud, she loved doing her own housework, buying her groceries, hanging out her washing and doing her own gardening. This continued until she turned 99. Because of failing eyesight, she reluctantly consented to having help during the day. She, however, still insisted on doing her laundry, making her bed and getting a cup of tea for all who entered her home.

Unfortunately because of a fall, she spent the last four months of her life in the hospital. There she slowly faded until her demise the last week of April. An amazing woman has left our midst!

Born in the year 1905 the youngest of ten children in Millville, The Codroy Valley, Newfoundland, Maggie Alice, as she was known, was a witness to so many historic changes in her life and this world she lived in. The amenities she had in her home in 2010 could never have been imagined at the beginning of her life. The advances in technology and transportation, for example, must have been overwhelming for her!

As a young woman, when she wanted to go dancing, she walked from Millville to Upper Ferry, (about five miles) danced all night and then walked home. She often boasted of doing such a thing. There was no such thing as taking a ride in a car to get her there and back. When she told me this story, I didn’t think to ask her why she didn’t take the horse and buggy. It seemed to be the custom at the time for she and her friends to go “shanks mare.”(By foot!)

After she married her husband Paul and they started their family, she didn’t work with the household conveniences we have today. Her laundry was done in a tub with a glass wash board. She learned how to cook and bake on a stove fuelled by wood. There weren’t any dishwashers or microwaves at that time! Rearing twelve children, keeping house and managing a little store as a younger woman in St. Andrews kept her quite busy. Back then, it was common for the boys to help their father with the outdoor chores while the girls learned how to keep house and cook. They were taught well by their mother.

It wasn’t all work and duty. The family gathered round the organ played by their mother while they joined with their father to sing Irish and Newfoundland songs. Paul’s favourite was “Danny Boy.” “When You and I Were Young, Maggie” was her favourite because he sang it to her. In later years, it was often requested for her on her birthday.

In 1954, the family left St. Andrew’s and moved to Stephenville. But Maggie was not one to forget her roots! Besides her many relatives, she also had many friends and often returned to visit. When Paul died of a heart attack at the age of 65, she buried him at the feet of his parents in St. Andrews. The family knew her place would be beside him when her turn came, and she was gently laid to rest in her beloved Codroy Valley!

She leaves behind a great legacy, that of 52 grandchildren, 74 great grandchildren and 9 great-great grandchildren. While 9 of her children live in Newfoundland, one resides in Ontario and their children and grandchildren are scattered throughout varied parts of Canada and the United States of America.

She came into my life when I married her son John fifteen years ago. She shared many of her stories about growing up in the Codroy Valley and what it was like rearing a family with me. She often told many funny stories about Paul, who kept her laughing most of the time. Like most families, they experienced hard times and sad times as well. She buried two of her daughters who died of cancer as young mothers leaving behind young families. Maggie also lost one child in a miscarriage, so she knew what it was to suffer grief and sadness.

Like all of us, she was human and had her faults and foibles. I prefer, however; to remember her as someone who was fun to be with. As it grew more evident that she needed more care as she got older, the family took turns staying overnight with her. She had her nightly rituals. Sometimes she had a habit of getting up in the middle of the night thinking that it was early morning. It became my job when it was our turn to stay with her to remind her to wait until we called her for breakfast.

“If I find you wandering around in the night, I’ll beat you with a feather!” I would remark. She would laugh, and after I made sure she had her rosary beads, she’d settle down for the night. This continued until she had her accident. It then became our routine to visit the hospital on a regular basis especially during meal time.

I have many happy memories of her during that time. Some are quite funny! Her short term memory had started to deteriorate prior to her fall. She would often remark about not remembering something from her past. The longer her stay in the hospital, the more noticeable it became that her memory was failing her. She frequently thought she was living back at her home in the Valley. One night, as John was saying good night to her, she asked him if he were going straight home. When he said he was, she told him, “Take the horse.” Other examples showed that her heart and mind were back there. It was a blessing that she died peacefully and quietly at 10:30 pm on April 28th.

Maggie Alice wasn’t famous in the way that the world considers it! She was a strong woman who showed me what a life of commitment and duty entailed. Living more than 100 years is quite a feat! My life has been gifted because of her presence! I will long remember her influence - especially her love of music and dancing! May she dance forever in the streets of heaven!

May you in turn take time to appreciate the giftedness of your life!

Until the next time!

Bride