My grandparents on my father's side are pictured to the left. Like my mother's parents, they played an important role in helping me become the person I am today. It was my granddad who pulled over to the side of the road one day while we were spending the day together. The field we were observing had just been cut and he stopped to smell the aroma that filled the air. I was about ten years old but that memory is so vivid in my mind almost forty years later that I can still smell the fragrance from that special moment. I also remember the time he took me to the store to get a baseball glove. We weren't celebrating Christmas or a birthday, just a quality day with my grandfather and he loved sharing his wisdom with me. He really enjoyed learning. His poodle named Poco was always at his side. I have never seen a dog as well trained as his little buddy.I have written about "Grammy" in previous posts. She compiled a book of poems for all her children and grandchildren and I rediscovered it yesterday as I was organizing my house. As I read "Ingredients for a Mulligan Stew", I thought about how tough it must have been for my grandparents to lose a young child. They brought ten children into the world. Grammy's poems helped her to express what was in her heart and the lessons are timeless.
My aunts and uncles are very special people. They all came together when my father was sick just as they did when there brother was fighting his battle with leukemia. I know that my grandparents and some of my dad's siblings were waiting on the other side when it was time for my father to join them.
My cousins are a reflection of my grandparents. I see special gifts in each of them that come from the generations before. When these gifts are nurtured, the world is better. Below is an excerpt from my Grammy's collection of poems. I especially like the last line because it reminds me of all the good acts that these two special people did while on this earth. They are a tough act to follow...
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