Hey Folks,
Today would be our dear Grammy's 93rd birthday. I want to do a post in her memory and honor. I wouldn't be who I am today without her. She and Grampy supported each of us children in so many ways: paying for us to take music lessons and learn hobbies, teaching us to golf and giving us clubs, pouring out their love onto us as much as they could, especially during the summer weeks we were privileged to spend with them in Iowa each year. As our family grew, and the number of grandkids expanded from two to four to six, their love and support grew as well.
We have so many fond memories of Grammy and her spunky humor. She was a storyteller, and we still laugh about the Tiny Tim stories she began making up for us when we were very young. Even as teens we would ask her what Tiny Tim was up to, until, last we heard, he was walking the Great Wall of China and she’d lost touch with him. Ironically, Grammy passed away on April 1, 2022…that well-loved day of the year when humor takes over the home, the workplace, and relationships. I was in a writing class the semester she passed, and the day of her death, I was composing a personal narrative about the role she had played in my life. I want to share this essay with you, in her memory. It will be attached at the end of this post.
Here's a photo recap of some of our favorite memories with Grammy since 2016:
Side note with regards to the personal narrative: When I wrote in the essay eabout waiting for that fateful text message, I was literally sitting on the couch writing as I waited. I wrote up until the moment the text came through. The next portion of the paper was written just hours after receiving the text. I haven’t rewritten it and only made minimal edits, so the raw emotions of that day are exactly that…raw.
No one can take the place of our dear Grammy. Even now I’m fighting back tears as I write. The quote that I based my personal narrative off of remains as true today as it did the day Grammy entered eternity. The grief of losing her comes and goes. Sometimes thinking about her brings joy. Other days...such as when I graduated, brings the grief of her loss. Through it all, I thank God for the time we had with her and the legacy of love that she (and Grampy) left.
Happy birthday, Grammy! We miss you so much and look forward to the day when we get to see you again... in perfect health and walking beside our Lord.
Until next time, God bless!
P.S. A beautiful little back story about Grammy and Grampy... My mom's Mom (Olga) died of cancer when my Mom was 17 years old. Her dad (Ray) died the year after my parents were married, so by the time children started coming along, there were no living grandparents to us on my Mom's side. Wilma (Olga's younger sister) and her husband, Bill, had never had children of their own. So while they were Aunt Wilma and Uncle Bill to my mom, they became Grammy and Grampy to me and my siblings. In other words, they got to skip the parenting step in life and go right straight to grandparenting! They played their parts perfectly, doting on us and spoiling us up good. When my Mom was 45, they did an adult adoption of her to formalize the relationship we all had with each other. They became my Mom's legal parents. It's a lovely story, and especially when you think about the fact that in my family of 6 kids, only 2 of us are biologically related to our parents. The other four siblings are adopted. So, myself, my biological older brother, and my 4 adopted siblings were all made the legal grandchildren of Wilma and Bill through their adult adoption of our mom. If you were able to follow all of this, I trust you can see it's a pretty sweet story of God's love and providential provision for everyone involved.
Beautiful