Today my grandmother would have been 101 years old.
Oh my. I still remember her being in her 50's as I am now. Something else I recall? For my birthday she'd mail me a dollar bill inside of a birthday card and one year, she enclosed 3 dollar bills in a Christmas card addressed to Tom, a teeny Naomi and myself. Later I wrote to her (and my grandfather), telling them I bought this cookbook with the money they sent, something which would help the three of us:
Yesterday I sat in my new tiny bedroom and pulled out that book, read parts of it with a smile and remembered my grandparents, the most contented Christians on planet Earth who felt grateful for every dish and towel and bed and each tiny house they rented. They exuded contentment and it's a joy to think of them both. They're never far from me and even though they both moved all the way over to Heaven years ago, I can't feel sad for or about them. I feel only glad I knew them and that they're awaiting my visit someday to their new home.
They were special and loved me unconditionally and that is something you never forget, no matter how many decades carry you along.
*****
Speaking of books ... You know how some bloggers share the titles of books upon their nightstands? Books like political thrillers or murder mysteries or deeply spiritual ones or big, thick biographies of historical figures?
Well, here are the books on mine:
Oh well. As Caroline Ingalls used to often quip: "It takes all kinds to make a world." And it's ok if you're a different kind. :)
And you know? It's especially wonderful when you find others who 'get you.' People like my new friend, Terri, who blessed my very soul when she wrote this on my Facebook timeline:
"I ran into you today...I was minding my own business down here in Georgia in my local flea market and stepped around a corner and came face to face with a box of juvenile and YA fiction and there you were, leaning over the box with me and telling me which you'd choose! lol Hope you enjoyed that little visit to Georgia."
Totally made my whole weekend! And it further proved that old or new friends, doesn't matter. Each are special when they fulfill this old saying, "A friend in need is a friend, indeed." That's what matters most.
Amen.
*****
Free Kindle book:
Innocents Abroad
Smiling thru my tears...
ReplyDeleteHi Debra! I miss my grandparents so much! They were very special to me. When I was around 8 until about 13, I spent almost every Saturday with my mom's mother learning all kinds of homemaking skills from here. My grampa would come in around dinner time and give me a big hug and light his pipe and I would sit and listen to him tell me stories. After dinner, we would watch Lawrence Welk. My grandparents also loved me unconditionally. My dad's parents were a little different, but Gramp's (as I called him), loved me and I knew I was special to him, (only granddaughter.) I am incredibly thankful that I had the opportunity to know all my grandparents and some of my greatgrandparents too!
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