An Unforgettable Example

About a month ago, my 91-year-old grandma passed on. She outlived my grandpa by 14 years, but suffered many health problems along the way. She was the last of her siblings to go and had not seen her parents in about 50 years. Since I live so far away, it broke my heart that I could not attend the funeral in another state. Still the things she taught me as well as the memories I have of her will live on forever.

As a little girl, I lived only a few blocks from her. Some of my most cherished childhood memories were of the many Sunday dinners at her house. Grandma was a fantastic cook and my siblings and I always loved going over to her house. Since my grandpa was a fisherman, dinner often consisted of fried trout (or sometimes Southern friend chicken), homemade rolls, jello salad, garden vegetables, and strawberry freezer jam. Dessert always followed with a homemade berry pie. Yum! It's ironic that I hate cooking and I do not have the talent that she did.

On nights when my parents were out and my grandparents babysat me, I remember how grandma made everything fun. She often put on a fun movie then turned on her popcorn popper and let my siblings and I watch as the kernels popped into our favorite treat. Other times when my cousins came to visit, she taught us how to make cakes and treats.

One time I remember spending the night with my grandparents when I was about three years old. It was just me and since I was scared, Grandma let me sleep between her and Grandpa in their bed. Of course I could not sleep without my dolls, of which there were three or four. We squeezed the dolls between us and another one on top of the pillows, then we all went to sleep. In the morning, Grandma and I woke up and did not see Grandpa. We looked everywhere, but he was nowhere to be found. Finally we found him down in the basement asleep on the sofa. He said the dolls had made him fall out of the bed! Grandma laughed about that story for years.

Many times as a young child, I accompanied Grandma to a neighbor's home or to visit a sick friend. She always took a jar of jam, homemade rolls, or a pie to cheer them up and it always worked. She and my grandpa volunteered at the thrift store, Deseret Industries, and often visited the elderly in the local nursing home. They served three LDS missions in West Virginia, Georgia, and Ontario, Canada. My grandparents also served as temple workers in the Logan, Utah Temple. I learned how to serve others by watching her.

Family history was also one of Grandma's hobbies. I loved looking through her Books of Remembrance as she showed photos of my ancestors and told me stories about them. It is because of her that I feel that I know them and love them. Her many stories will continue to live on as I tell them to my children.

Though I miss my grandma's cheerfulness, laughter, and love for her fellow man through service, I know that she is really not that far away since I will always carry a part of her with me. I only hope that when I am gone someday, my descendants will think as highly of me as they do of her.