Grandma Gist

When my mom called today she said, "Grandma went to be with Bill."  And I responded with something about entering heaven "with pearls and her face on."


She never wanted to leave even her room without "her face on."

My mom was teary.  I got a little choked-up.  It is not because it is a tragedy that Grandma passed away - she has lived an incredibly full, long, love-filled life.  It was her time.  She was ready to be whole.  To be reunited with Grandpa.  To think clearly.  To meet God face-to-face.  She was ready.  And I am thankful He took her peacefully.  I can rejoice in her life.

Grandma's life was always bigger than a fairy tale to me.  I never really understood how she did it - but each little piece of her life that she shared with me I will never ceased to be amazed by.

The red phone that sits in my mom's kitchen was a "party line" out at The Lake in NE.  The whole family would spend months out there when Grandpa returned from war.

The teak furniture that will soon be in my dining room traveled to the US from Denmark.  Grandma and Grandpa picked it out on one of their many military adventures and decided to ship it home.

Germany was home for my grandparents for a little while - Grandma didn't mind spending a few years raising three small children there.

And the glamour of being a Lt. Colonel's wife back then... the parties, the dinners at the club, the children riding at the base stables, the far away travels... it is all so far from my life.

So is the thought of saying goodbye to my husband for years at time with nothing more than the hope of a phone call.  The strength to go at it alone, day after day after day, raising three amazing children.  The strength to live not in utter fear but in courage.  That is so far from my life - and something I never once heard her mention.

She was an amazing woman, Grandma.  She was a rock - stubborn, organized, strong, discerning, clear headed, faithful.  She seemed to love to be a woman, but never obsessed over things.  It is true - Grandpa bought her clothes and furnished the house.  She didn't really care about that stuff, but she was always dressed to the nines.  She cared more to work in the thrift store.

Grandma, sweet grandma.  I will miss you.  I have missed you.

“I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.”
― Audrey Hepburn