My grandma passed away last Saturday. She had a stroke a couple of days before Christmas and was in a rehab facility recovering. It mainly only took away her speech, but she wasn't going to be able to live alone after this. She just went white on her way to the bathroom and she was gone. A presumed second stroke. She was 90 and had always lived alone until Christmas. What a lady. I was able to fly out for her funeral this past weekend. As I drove through Idaho Falls on my way to her house with my brother Tobin, I thought about how this would probably be my last time here. There would be no reason to come back. Floods of childhood memories ran through my mind as I realized it would be the last time I'd be in my Grandma's house as well. the House that she and grandpa built themselves. A trip to Grandma's house when I was young meant working in her garden, climbing her enormous tree, playing with cousins, eating lots of yummy food, and having Ice cream with Grandpa. Grandma was wonderful cook, a beautiful quilt maker, an expert at the piano and organ, and an extremely hard worker. She had a large garden that she worked every summer, even the last one. Almost every one of my cousins (15 out of 18) were able to come for the weekend. My sister and I helped prepare a big dinner for everyone in the immediate family Friday night. I thought it was fitting that the meal was almost entirely provided by Grandma' own hands. She was ever prepared in her food storage. We grabbed roasts from the freezer and the rest of her potatoes and carrots that were stored from her garden last summer. We seasoned the soup with parsley she had grown and dried. We made Neighbor Cake (a grandma classic my sis-in-law Becky blogged about recently) with fruit she had bottled herself. We even pulled some pumpkin and zucchini breads she had made out of the freezer for dessert. I learned a lot from my grandma. One of the best lessons I've learned from her is to work hard and be resourceful. She could make anything she needed out of anything she had. I'm grateful for her and her influence in my life and know her memory lives on in the little things I do each day.
6 comments:
sorry to hear about your Grandma passing. It is so hard to loose someone you love and have so many fond memories with. It sounds like your grandmother has left an amazing legacy that you and your children and their children will share many stories and teachings from. That is so awesome that the dinner was made from her garden and food storage! Hope your heart heals quickly and you find comfort in knowing you will be with her again one day. :)
I'm glad you are home safe from your travels.
Those were nice words about your grandma. And, no wonder you are so great----she sounds awesome! Like the saying goes the apple does not fall far from the tree-
What a great productive life she lived- even till the very last moments. That is wonderful
I bet it was nice to be with family to celebrate the life she lived on earth
we sent something to the kids-they should have it by friday (i hope!)
Sarah, I'm sorry to hear of the passing of your Grandmother. This post was a beautiful tribute to her, and I enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing.
So sorry for your loss. She sounds like a wonderful woman, who gave many of her talents to her grandchildren as well (hint). I'm glad you were able to make it to the funeral. Sometimes funerals can be a joyful occasion, esp. when the loved one lived a long, full life.
I think that meal you prepared, made by grandma's hands, was absolutely beautiful! She sounds like quite the inspiring woman. What a legacy she left with you all!
thanks for posting.
(ps: who is this C and K person? do you know them? the one who left a comment just above mine? thanks)
Jessica, The mystery c and k person is Colleen
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