Reminiscing...

My Grandma is dying. She is merely a shell of who she used to be and so it comes with hope that life will be easier on the other side. And I am thankful for the memories I have, memories that I will always hold close to me...

Gramm always had food for us, prepared and ready to warm-up, after the 4 hour drive to her house. "Are you hungry? I made spaghetti," she would say as she hugged us. Food was special at Grandma's house. Breakfasts with things like sausage and eggs and sugar cereals. Kool-aid at almost every meal. And then there are those foods that will forever be connected to my Grandma. Foods like Cathedral Windows and Pretzel Salad, Pecan Pie, and Orange Dream Bars. Those luscious cathedral windows were always made and in the freezer waiting to be sliced and enjoyed before we ever arrived. The pretzel salad was another story, though. She always saved it to be made together. And without fail, we made it together...wrong. We always ended up making that salad twice. And every time we made it wrong, Gram would laugh and then we would start over again. Grandma laughed at just about everything. And when we visited, Mom would join in on the fun. I can still hear them sitting in the back office laughing about some box of clothes. I can still feel the pure joy of both of them laughing at how our game of Junior Bridge turned out. Those late night games and Lawrence Welck went hand in hand. And while Mom and Grandma were busy singing with Lawrence I would often sneak into the kitchen and snack on dry marshmallows or chocolate chips. I knew I wouldn't get in trouble cuz Grandma said I could eat anything I could find...but I sure used to wish that drawer wasn't so squeaky just in case Mom disagreed. We were always busy at Grandmas. I remember one project she had me work on. She had a catalogue that was probably a million pages thick and I was supposed to fold the corner of every page so it would make a doorstop. I worked and worked and worked to get all those pages folded before I had to go home. It wasn't until later I realized that I never did see that supposed doorstop put to use. But I was always game for whatever Gram had in mind. My favorite chore was to reorganize her jewelry box. She always got it so messy while I was gone and then she would praise my organization skills and beg me to fix it again. Grandma taught me how to play Solitaire and always had a new hairstyle to try out on my hair. She was the queen of yard sales and going with her meant that you got to pick out treasures of your own...

My sweet Grandma worked very hard to entertain, love, and enjoy life. Laughing was her thing. She hasn't laughed in a long while and even as I wish I could hear that laugh or maybe play another game of Junior Bridge or sit on the back patio with a dream bar...I know that one day we will be reunited. I look forward to that day Gram.