Codename: Tranquility — Debby Thompson

**First Lady of the Greatest Generation**

Barbara Bush

1925 - 2018

Over the course of this past week, I have kept a list of comments made about Barbara Bush. A collection of some of the finest tributes follows:

Barbara Pierce met her husband-to-be at a Christmas dance when she was sixteen. She never kissed another man. Their love story—theirs was an extraordinarily successful marriage—was one for the ages.

During World War II, she volunteered in a nuts and bolts factory.

Bar (her nickname) made 29 moves to 17 cities in 73 years of marriage.

Barbara operated with a foot in the family and a foot in the world of politics, and was known for teaching her children, "Don't get caught up in the big me."

Her favorite book was Pride and Prejudice. Her own life was a consummate good read.

"The home is the child's first school, the parent is the child's first teacher, and reading is the child's first subject." -Barbara Bush

In her commencement address to the graduating class of Wellesley in 1990, Mrs. Bush said, "At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, winning one more verdict. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend, or a parent."

During her life alongside the Secret Service, she once stated, “I am old and fat and have gray hair; no one will be threatened by me.”

At her death, the Secret Service said of her, “She was the epitome of class and grace both during and after her service to our country as First Lady of the United States.”

She lived a life of purpose.

Tenderly, Jenna Bush Hagar on Today penned an emotional tribute to Barbara Bush, Remembering Ganny: We called you 'the enforcer.' It was because, of course, you were a force and you wrote the rules and your rules were simple. Treat everyone equally; don't look down on anyone, use your voices for good, read all the great books...Humor, wit, and grace are the best accessories; words matter, kindness matters, looks fade.

And most amazing of all were her words shared by her son Jeb at her funeral: