Memories of Grandma

I've always had a close relationship with my grandma, in fact I always struggle to wrap my heads around how it is that someone can not be close to their grandma, it truly seems foreign to me when I think of it.  But I try to step back and realize that not everyone lived in such close proximity to their grandmas and so maybe the relationships were different.  Maybe too it has something to do with my Grandma only having 3 grandkids - my sister, my brother, and myself.

Up until the time I was around 10 (with the exception of 1 year) I had always lived no more than 2 houses away from my grandma and right next door to my Great-Grandma and Great-Aunt.  We were small in number but were we ever close!  From an early age my grandma would pile us in her car and we'd go pick strawberries, grapes, blueberries, you name it.  As we got older she taught us to fish and would even bait my hook for me because she knew that was the only part I hated.  Well that and taking the fish off the hook! She bought me my first bicycle for Christmas one year, each year we'd submit a list of school supplies to her and she would buy everything on our list.  When we would go visit her all we ever wanted to watch on TV were MTV and BET, and after a little while she'd come inside and start dancing in the middle of the living room floor.  Oh, and boy did she love to pull pranks!

She loved us more than anything and she made sure we knew it.  She was as nice as pie to everyone around her, until they gave her a reason not to be, and if that ever happened...WATCH OUT!!!  Fortunately, that side of my grandma was never ever directed towards us but we had the opportunity to see it directed at others on a few occasions.  Mom would tell us stories from when she was a child as a way to help us see just how much our grandma had changed.

When I moved away to Michigan I decided that no matter what I would make sure I called my Grandma EVERY Sunday.  I never missed a call.  Those phone calls were just as important to me as they were to her.  I miss them but it death hasn't stopped me from talking to her.  I know she hears me, I know she remains close to all of us.  I can feel her with me all the time.