After living in Toronto for several years, I am grateful that I was able to spend a fair bit of time visiting with Grandma this past year. I tried to visit her most weeks and would always bring her a Tim Horton's coffee and treat when I came to see her. One day, when I didn't have a lot of time to visit with her and so I didn't bring her a treat, she asked "Did you bring me my cookie?" and she was disappointed when she found out I had nothing to offer her that week. I made sure to always bring her a treat after that!!
Grandma was usually very chatty when I visited and I loved our visits together this past year. Two weeks before Christmas, when I arrived for our morning visit (bearing a Tim Horton's coffee and Christmas cookies!), I found her in the chapel with the other residents listening to a Christmas performance. We had a wonderful time together listening to the orchestra perform traditional Christmas carols. We clapped after each song and Grandma remarked that it was a great concert. It reminded me of the many times that I attended Grandma and Grandpa's performances with the Dogwood Songsters. It was very special to be able to attend this last concert with her.
As a child, my Grandma used to send me and my siblings letters in the mail. Anyone who knew my Grandma, knows how much she loved to read. The letters seem like a very fitting memory since they combine my Grandma's love of words with her love for her grandchildren. When I was a teenager/young adult, we would sometimes share and exchange books. I'm so glad that we shared a love of reading. I think I take after Grandma in this way. We also share fine, delicate fingers! When I was growing up, my parents would often point out that I had my Grandma's delicate hands. I really like my spindly fingers and they are a constant reminder that I take after my Grandma. I'm really glad I mirror her in these ways!
At the beginning of November, I was having a Tim Horton's coffee with Grandma when she passed along these beautiful words: "As you get older, you find joy in different things. It's a different type of happiness. Happiness goes right through the skin. So does sadness. But we have had a blessed life. Happiness has shone right through us." Now that she has passed, I'm reminded about how very wise those words are. Your words ring true, Grandma. Very true.
