today would have been my mam-maw's birthday. i don't want to say her age because i'm not sure! late 80's i think. anyway.....she fought her battle with cancer 6 years ago and passed away in june 2001.
my mam-maw was my best friend. she always told me to do what would make Jesus happy. she talked to me on my level and told me things that still ring through my head. she kept me in the summers so that i wouldn't have to go to daycare (i hated it!!!) and spoiled me rotten. every morning when mama would drop me off, mam-maw would start fixing my breakfast while i watched bozo the clown on the chicago station. she had cable and we didn't. she would then bring me breakfast on a tray. i can remember her peeling grapes for me because she thought i would like them better without skin. that's a lot of work! she also would take me down to the little drug store in itta bena anytime i wanted to get ice cream. she even let me and my friends pile up in the bed with her to spend the night!!!
i was the baby grandchild of 17 grandchildren. i know some of my cousins read this blog, but what i'm about to say they will not be surprised about! i always told mam-maw that i knew i was her favorite, but not to worry - i wouldn't tell the others! somewhere deep in my mind i still want to believe that - guess it comes with being an only child!
most of all, she loved me unconditionally. she always made me feel good about myself and taught me so much more than she ever realized about being nice to others. she was always supportive of me in everything i did.
we traveled together - just the 2 of us - to florida 2 years before she died. it was spring break 1999 and i wanted to go to the beach. mam-maw's youngest sister, aunt omega, lives in cantonment, florida, which is right by pensacola. so off mam-maw and i went...at the perfect time of the year. mam-maw loved flowers and if you have been down the stretch of highway 98 that goes from hattiesburg to mobile, you know that the azaleas bloom in an unreal amount during the spring. if i heard mam-maw say "heavenly days" 1 time, i heard it a thousand. i just smiled every time - somehow knowing that she was getting older and that she and i may not have this chance to be alone like this again.
like the post yesterday for jill, there are SO SO many things going through my head about mam-maw. i'm sure you can imagine with your own grandmother. but not a day goes by that i do not think about her - i have her portrait hanging in my den and cannot bring myself to erase her phone number out of my cell phone.
so happy birthday, mam-maw. i miss you more every day and wish you were here to see your precious great-granddaughter growing up. i hope that i have the impression on her life that you did on mine.
6 comments:
What a sweet post. I loved my grandmama the same way. Summers at her house and breakfast...wow, what sweet memories. Only instead of Bozo, I watched Captain Kangaroo...yes, dear, before your time! :) Thanks for reminding me!
hey.......i did watch captain kangaroo, too! but it came on at our house, so bozo was a treat - it was on cable!!!
but you ARE still older than me!!!
I love reading about your Mam-maw. I think it is so cool that you had that kind of relationship with her.
I am thankful for the memories of my grandmother and am grateful for the time I still have with my other grandmother. (We call BOTH of them Grandmama...go figure!)
Also, I loved Bozo AND Captain Kangaroo. And I still can remember walking around on those big ole cup things that had rope handles like the kids on Romper Room!
Aw man! I remember those things! And Romper Room!
My sisters and I LOVED Bozo. Thinking about it makes me want to set up a "Grand Prize Game" for the kids. They always won Archway cookies and a Schwinn bicycle;in retrospect not such spectacular prizes, but my mom sent in all of our names to be the "at-home" winner.
Hey Suzanne!!
I can't believe you found my blog!
I love this post, it made me cry because she sounds just like my Grandmother. I know we had similar situations growing up and my grandmother's godly example and unconditional love is what made me who I am today. Thank you for that reminder of her!
She also died after struggling with cancer about 7 years ago.
I hope you have a great day, kiss Mary Peyton for me!!
Christy
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