A Great Lady

^{by Vicki}

Tomorrow is the 96th anniversary of the birth of a fabulous lady who had a tremendous positive influence in my life and to all those she knew.   I can honestly say, and many others will back me up, that she NEVER had an unkind word to say to or about anyone.   And no matter  how things were going for  her, she ALWAYS had a smile to give to her friends and family. 

Her name was Mary, but to me she was Granny. 

 

I remember fondly all of the times I stayed with her and my grandfather as a child.  She spent time before my arrival preparing for me, then she doted on me and played with me and let me know she cared.  She took me to The Barter Theater to see several plays, including Agatha Christie's Mousetrap.  Sometimes the two of us would ride in the back seat while my grandfather drove and we would pretend that he was "Charles" the chauffer.  It was a fun game.

There were no malls or shopping centers in Abingdon where they lived, and we would shop in downtown department stores.  Before we went she would say something like this "I think we're going to find a parking space right in the front."  When her prediction came true I would be amazed.  I thought my grandmother had psychic powers.

As a child I loved hearing stories of her childhood.  She grew up in the same town as me and we actually attended the same elementary school.  Her father was assistant administrator at the Veteran's Administration center in our town, and she was the only girl in a family of 6 kids.  She talked alot about going out to visit friends and attending parties and attending boarding school in Kentucky. 

My favorite story was about the undertaker she was engaged to marry.  She was visiting him at work one day and he was working on a body.  He stopped working for a minute, took a bite of a sandwich and then went back to work.  That was just too much for Granny who said she couldn't marry him after that.  After all, she said, how could he eat a sandwich while working on a dead body.

Another favorite was how she met my grandfather.  He came to visit her, and someone told her one of the Booth boys was there to see her.  She was expecting one of his brothers and was surprised to see him.  After that it was true love and they ran away and got married.  My dad is going to kill me for writing this, but he always said that he was born 9 months and 20 minutes later.

Granny lived a difficult life, having a husband who drank alot,  a sick mother who moved in with her and a son who went off to war at 16 (my father).  Despite this, she didn't complain or harbor bad feelings.  By the time I was born my grandfather had stopped drinking and retired and they were always together it seemed.  They came to our  house every Christmas, birthday and attended all major events including my First Holy Communion. 

Presents were plentiful at our house on Christmas, partly because of the generosity of Granny.  She would bring package after package after package over every Christmas.  All would be handwrapped and the tag would say "From Santa".  As an only child, my present opening would seem to take  hours.

The last years of her life were hard for Granny because she developed Alzheimer's disease, broke her hip and had cancer.  She was confined to a wheelchair for several years and she didn't know who we were.  Nonetheless, she would always have that big smile for me and say "Hey Darling!"

Unfortunately the majority of my pictures are in a box somewhere in the house, so I only have a few available on the computer.  Here's a cute shot of her as a little girl.

 

Happy Birthday Granny!  May you Rest in Peace.

Comments

[Sue]

What a beautiful tribute to your Granny! Your wrote that on the 9th, so her birthday is on the 10th? I always knew I was in good company!

[Jim Donnelly]

What a perfect tribute. It is full of the love that was Aunt Mary. While I spent very little time with her compared to you, your words excellently describe her beauty. We were so fortunate to have her in our lives.
Jim

[Therese]

oh Vicki,

This is just beautiful. I love the photo of her as a little girl.