Books

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Monday, September 10, 2012

More About Grandmas

This morning, my husband's last living grandparent passed away. Grandma had been sick for quite a long time. She had recently been moved to the nursing home, but due to cancer in several areas, she was in a great deal of pain. The past couple of days had been very hard. So, while the call this morning wasn't really a shock, it's still hard to say goodbye. It's hard to imagine life without her.

When I first met her, I thought she was the most genteel Southern lady I had ever met. Her favorite color was dusty rose -- and as a widow with a house all to herself, the entire house was decorated in that color. I had never met anyone who had done that. (I thought she was probably exceedingly rich; she wasn't.)

I never really told anyone that until the past year or so. Everyone got a kick out of it, and once I heard her tell about her life as a child, I understood. Her family was dirt-poor. She told great stories about picking cotton and tending chickens. It was a harsh life, far from anything I can imagine. My favorite story was of the large family (she had 8 siblings) moving to a new house, but not having room for grandma in the truck; she had to ride in the back with the chickens.

To me, though, I will always see her as that proper, stately Southern belle that I met the very first time. I hope the family finds items the proper shade of dusty rose to use at her memorial service.

It also occurs to me that now my children have just one grandmother left = mine. And my grandma is 92. That thought has made me suddenly sad.

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