Dear Grandchildren,
I write today to share with you part of your roots. I called her Mother for 76 years. Your dads called her Ma. She loved your fathers and would have loved you, too. This is the first lesson you may learn from her. Never once did she boo her family or forget to applaud loudly for us. I hope you learn this well.
Her home was one of order. In fact, order was part of her make-up. She probably never went over the speed limit or ran a stop sign in her entire life. You may learn the design of an ordered life from her.
All her life was kept in bounds. She played by the rules. She was a polite, precise, church loving lady. She never cheated or cut corners. You may learn the value of honesty from her.
She took delight in a job will done. Her standards were high. One example of her quality workmanship is the beautiful quilts in all our homes. You may learn the pursuit of excellence from her.
Loyalty was part of her character. She was loyal to my father’s parents after his death, her church, her family and to me. She never thought of her self as a big deal. Always, you could find her in the background of any picture. I will look for that loyalty in your lives as you grow up.
The greatest lesson you may learn from her is how to survive with “true grit.” It took real grit to send a young husband off to war in the 1940’s. Grit and grace were needed to raise a daughter all by yourself after receiving the “I regret to inform you…” letter from our government.
Never was this “true grit” more evident than in the comeback from her first stroke. The second stroke, six months later, left her with no power to fight before she died. I have to tell you a secret. She was a “scaredy cat” when it came to doing some things alone. So when I knew God was going to take her home to live with Him, I asked Him to send 10,000 angels to come and get her. At times, I still hear those angel wings in my heart.
I’m grateful on this Mother’s Day 2007 she passed through my life as my mother. I hope she will repass through me into your life and the cycle will not be broken in you, my grandchildren…Adam, Neal, Anna, Slade and Annaliegh. Listen closely and you just might hear those angel wings even now.
P.S. Have you written a “this I remember letter” to your grandchildren lately? I hope my letter will encourage you to do so. A loving legacy left in a letter needs to be read, celebrated and lived out from one generation to another.
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