In Memoriam
Hubby's grandmother, Arthelia, who would have turned 96 years old this coming Sunday, passed away last Saturday morning. She was a remarkable woman who traveled the world, gave birth to five children, and supported her family while her husband fought in WWII. She was a schoolteacher for many years, and in general just a smart cookie!
As she aged and her body slowed down, she still kept going. Art never let her physical limitations keep her from experiencing life. We'd sometimes offer to take her out to lunch, or to the park, or to a movie, knowing that despite her creaky knees, she'd always grab her walker and say, "Well, that'd be nice."
To the very end, her mind was as sharp as a tack. The ever-present crossword puzzle books she carried around helped with her memory retention capabilities, she said. I constantly marveled at the way she was able to keep up with hubby's sharp wit. Not many people were as quick as she.
Saturday afternoon, we sat the kids around the kitchen table and told them that GG had gone to heaven. They were devastated. The last close relative to die was my mother in 1998, and the kids were too young to remember much about her. But they have many more memories of GG, which made it that much harder to let her go.
We are all comforted by the fact that at least she is no longer in pain. And that she is finally reunited with her beloved little sister, Bliss, who died in 1918 when she was five years old. GG is also being greeted by her husband of fifty-plus years, who predeceased her in 1991. I can hear him now - "Art, what took you so long?"
In addition to dozens of other long-lost relatives that she is now reconciled with, she is probably most thrilled to see her firstborn child, who died the day he was born. At the time of his birth, I'm not sure the nurses even let her see the baby, so being able to at long last will be especially wonderful.
For those of us left behind, we say Godspeed to you, Art. We will miss you very much, and will try to live our lives the way you lived yours - with passion, adventure, and love.
