It's funny how the passage of time can escape us until a commemorative date like today appears. I miss her on so many days - particularly on those she would have told me how proud she was of me and how much she loved me with a hug and perhaps a tear or two.
I thought of her the day I got married and imagined how much she would have loved her grandson-in-law. I thought of her the day my sister's beautiful baby girl Rachel Valerie was born, knowing how much she would have loved having her name in my niece's middle name. I know she would have marveled and sighed at the advances made in medicine in Rachel's time. She had always mourned for her own premature baby girl who today would have surely survived.There was no question, my grandma came of age in a time of incredible hardship. She was the first of her parents' five children to be born in the United States. At four years old she lost her dad and the family had to work to keep the family farm learn to survive without him. Through it all she taught us all so much about love compassion, family, service and loyalty.
Grandma, I miss you and remember you today with so much love in my heart.
Those of you reading this: if you are lucky enough to have a grandparent who is living, I have some advice.
- See your life as a way of celebrating your grandparents. The pride they experience in their grandchildren means more than you might ever know.
- Remember to spend time hearing stories. Someday those stories will be worth more than you can even imagine.
- Savor those little moments. In the grand scheme of life, those little moments are big. If we don't slow down enough, we miss them. It's often the very young or the very old that truly understand this philosophy.
Happy 100th Birthday to my Grandma, Godlieve Valerie Duxbury. You are never forgotten.
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