Memories of Gramma
Writing down just one favourite memory of my Gramma is proving to be difficult for me as there are so many! However, it made me think of a quote from American poet and memoirist, Maya Angelou: "People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel". I will always remember the way my Gramma made me feel. When I was little, my Gramma made me feel safe to explore and be imaginative. My favourite thing to do was collect random trinkets from all over her house and bring them down to the 'secret' carpeted crawl space to make imaginary stores and restaurants. My Gramma made me laugh. Whether it be the cute little dance she did (ask my Dad to see the video), teasing me that I’ll have a wrinkly neck if I don't put night cream on every night, making inappropriate jokes at the dinner table to prove she 'still remembers' what it's like to be younger, or cornering my soon to be husband in her dining room to confirm he believes in God. My Gramma made me feel FULL! She made the best goulash, string bean stew and rice pudding. We also more recently bonded over our love of putting lemon juice on everything! The first team I worked for at Co-operators were introduced to my Gramma (or Grammy as they called her) when we had a bake sale. Lucky for them, I didn't bake anything for it, but Grammy did. From there on she always said yes when they requested chocolate cupcakes, pumpkin pies or cheese and bacon pinwheels. Lastly, as an adult, my Gramma inspired me to be strong. She was SO strong - even up to her last days. My favourite part of visiting her at her house was the way she'd come to the front screen door and wave good-bye multiple times as we backed out of the driveway. The last time Nick and I visited her in Hospice, though we could tell it was difficult for her to do, she still lifted her little arm and gave us a wave. I will miss my Gramma so much, but I'll do my best to make others feel the way she made me feel, so that her story can live on.