Jacqueline & Francois slept permanently in a coal-gas filled tenement on Fisher St. in early March, 1946. Rescuers arrived too late to save these children. This tragedy marked the beginning of the “great sadness”, AKA, “la grande tristesse”, of my life.
The crowning ceremony of this four-day tragic episode happened at the Saint-Louis de France Church on Boisvert Street where a funeral Mass was said in honor of our young school mates.
I recall the haunting melody called: “J’irai la voir un jour” that filled all hearts in that cavernous chamber with unusual finality. It is hard to lose a friend. Emotions can overwhelm the naive heart of a seven-year-old child. For years and years, that scene has replayed its poignant wales as a reminder that life is easily broken and that our most beautiful dreams can suddenly become our most painful losses.