Monday, October 12, 2009

She would've been 86 today!

Nana would have been 86 years old today. Wow...what a life. More amazing is the fact that in November, she and Pops would've been married for 67 years! I can't help but have a little sadness over the fact that Nana went on to be with Jesus in July of 2008. She had an amazing life though, and through all her trials and hardships I learned some amazing lessons.

Always go to the one who will let you get your way!

Nana's mom died when she was only 18 months old, so she was raised by her dad and grandparents. From the stories I was told, one set of grandparents lived "up the hill" and one set lived "down the hill." Whenever she would get in trouble by her dad, she would go to whichever set of grandparents would be the most likely to let her have her way, and there she would stay until her father forgot whatever she was in trouble about.

Find your one true love, and hold on tight!

Nana and Pops got married when they were 19...19! After they got married they moved to the "big city" aka Memphis, and Nana moved into a boarding house while my Pops went off to war. It's during this time that Nana began to work at Sears, from where she eventually retired, and is where she learned to do the next lesson.....

Always hide a little money just for yourself!

Nana always had cash on hand...always. For the longest time I thought it was money that Pops gave to her, but after she passed away we found out she had several "secret" accounts she had opened at various banks, and put money away just in case she needed to buy something for herself. Now, don't get me wrong-Pops NEVER said NO to this woman. Whatever she wanted, she got, but I guess she thought "just in case" so she opened these accounts. The funny thing was they all had my grandfathers name on them too...so really, did she think he would never find out?

Peanut Butter and cracker is the medicine for all ailments!

Whenever you were hungry, weather it be at the beauty shop, out shopping, or even at church, Nana always had peanut butter and cracker in her purse. I can remember a time in church when I told my Mom I wasn't feeling well, and she sent me over to Nana during the next hymn to get some peanut butter and cracker to calm my stomach. Of course Nana insisted on me sitting with her for the rest of the service, and of course the candy helped out so much too, that by the time we got out of church-I was going home with her and Pops for the afternoon!

If you have a sinking spell, you can get out of all kinds of housework!

Nana had sinking spells often. It could be because the Tigers were losing at basketball. It could be because one of my sisters was doing back handsprings across the backyard...heck, it could be because I didn't have a boyfriend, but whenever she had a sinking spell, she could not do anything else. Seriously...Pops waited on her hand and foot while she sat in her chair rubbing her forehead. Sometimes these were actually her not feeling well, however a lot of times, she was just tired of doing housework.

Always be a princess with a "hard times" drawer!

Nana lacked for nothing. She had all kinds of jewelry, clothes and purses, and went shopping every Friday, but she also had a "hard times" drawer. This drawer, at the bottom of her dresser had a set of men's and women's pj's, as well as pantyhose, fingernail polish, cash, and a couple of pieces of costume jewelry. You never actually went into the hard time drawer, but you knew it was there...you know, for hard times.

Love your kids and grand kids, but most importantly love your Jesus!

I never questioned if Nana loved me, never. My sister Amy used to think Nana was trying to fatten us up to put us in the oven like on Hansel and Gretel, but we seriously knew that Nana loved us. She tried to make it to sporting events, choir concerts, plays, big achievements, whatever....she was an active grandparent. We also knew she loved my Mom and Aunt. If they ever needed anything, Nana was always there with a helping hand. She would babysit us, keep us so our Mom's could just do laundry, pop in to say hello, then take someone to spend the night, whatever she was there. But more than the way she loved us, she loved her Jesus. Her favorite hymn was What a Friend We Have in Jesus. I can only imagine how much she is loving on her friend now. Praising and worshipping and waiting until the time she can welcome her family home!

I miss her, I really do, so on this what would've been her 86th birthday, I can only say thank you Nana. Thank you for the impression you made on my life. Thank you for showing me that marriage isn't easy, but it's all worth it in the end. Thank you for loving me, your oldest grandchild, with all the love you had to give, but never short changing your other grand kids either. Thank you for teaching me about coupons, and how if you save some money, you can go far in this life. Thank you, most importantly for showing me what a Christian wife, mother, and grandmother looks like! Thank you for living your life without compromise, willing to share Jesus with others, if only by the way you lived your life. Thank you!

No comments:

Post a Comment