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Grandma's guidance not forgotten
(by Barbara Christian - December 23, 2008)
WINDOW ON MAIN STREET, BY BARBARA CHRISTIAN
Grandma's guidance not forgotten
No doubt about it, this is a wonderful season. And, if you are of a certain age, there will be sadness for those who are not with us, at least not physically. We miss them and remember them perhaps more vividly than at any other season.
My parents put in an appearance in my dreams occasionally, and I look forward to their next visit. Just wish they would bring Grandma next time. She's been gone more than 50 years, but I will never stop missing her.
I hope you had a grandma like mine. I think the world would be better off if world leaders had grandmas like mine. There would be no war mongering, if world leaders had a grandma like mine. There would be no hanky panky in the accounting department, if businessmen had Grandma looking over their shoulder.
She owned two businesses, a candy store and the tailor shop next to it. When she retired, Grandma helped my mom then my aunt. Wherever there was a new baby to nurture, there was Grandma.
I never saw her angry. Never. But she did have her demands. A couple of times a year, Grandma's card club would come to our house for lunch and pinochle. One of her requests was to clean under my bed. Now, to a 10-year-old, this seemed a bit silly. But she insisted. She had her reason, and its name was Birdie, Grandma's best friend. Grandma's reasoning went something like: "You know the women put their coats on your bed, so what if Birdie drops her scarf or hat and what if she should look under your bed as she picks it up? Now, what kind of housekeeper would she think I was?"
Grandma was many things to the people and family members who loved her. She was Anna, Anna Miller, Mrs. Miller, Aunt Annie and Mom.
But to me, she was "Grandma" or "Gram." And she looked like a grandma too. She wore a lace-up corset well into the 1950s. Her hair was snow white, and she wore it in a rolled bun at the nape of her neck, from ear to ear. It made the back of her head look like a smiley face.
Grandma lived with us most of my growing-up years. Almost every week, we went on a field trip, thanks to the old Redefer Blue Line bus. Just the two of us.
Often we would end up at the Cleveland Museum of Art. We would go inside and look at the great works of art then sit by the lagoon and feed the birds. We formed a bond.
Grandma was the "go-to" person when things got rough. She was my mentor, my defender and my biggest fan. There was nothing I could do that was wrong. You need someone like that in your corner when you are a kid.
I wish my grandma was still around. There are so many questions I should have asked her.
Grandma is gone, but she left a legacy, a kind of recipe on how to be a good and loving person, a humble person and an exemplary grandma. I try my best to follow it. She still guides me in many ways.
I hope she is watching and that she is proud.
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