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Sunday, August 4, 2013

She Saved My Life...

She saved my life.  I was there, of course, but I was only an infant...so I don't remember much of the event.  As the story-telling goes...my temperature escalated to a point that I actually had a convulsion.  My grandmother noticed it and they subsequently rushed me to the ER, where I was quickly placed in an ice bath. To make a long story short, I survived with no apparent side affects, and have lived almost 5 1/2 decades since. She always took credit for saving my life.  On July 27, I delivered my grandmother's eulogy at her funeral...

Memaw

My grandfather (her husband of 74 years) passed away just 8 months earlier in November 2012. They married when she was 15, and had been together almost 3/4 of a century since. When they passed, he was 96 and she was 90.  I suppose that when they first saw each other in heaven, he might have said to her, "Hi there beautiful. What took you so long?" Until the very end, they had actually never spent a night separated. They were always together, and now, will continue to be so.

Marvin & Mary Thomas

They were the last living grandparents that I had.  A generation is gone. We were fortunate to have been able to capture a 5-generations picture before they passed. It's a rare and priceless treasure for me to keep.  Our 4-year old granddaughter, Savannah, is in the generational picture. My 90-year old grandmother passed on Savannah's birthday.  Such timing and coincidence does not go unnoticed.

Five Generations

My wife, Tami, and I really enjoyed talking with my grandparents about their early lives. They were both born into quite a different world almost a century ago. They've had experiences, hardships, and a lifestyle that I can only barely imagine.  Their stories are not so different from others who lived back then, but hugely divergent from the experiences and conveniences from my life and my kids lives.  In some ways, listening to them proudly speak of their past made me appreciate my lifestyle, yet made me feel a bit guilty for all that we have.  For that, I count their stories as priceless.

My grandfather continued to drive his car well into his 90's, albeit very slowly. Several times, younger/faster drivers would get caught behind them on the road as they made an occasional trip to their local Walmart in Elizabethtown, KY.  Once a frustrated driver behind my grandfather, finally passed him and shouted, "Hey old man! Speed up or get off the road!!" My grandmother was reported as saying, "That driver made me so mad when he yelled at us that I just felt like flipping him 'the THUMB'!".  She may have confused the Finger vs Thumb usage, but she got the idea right... This was not her usual nature, but I appreciate her spunk...

They were wonderful relatives to 4 children, 9 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, and 4 great-great-grandchildren.  Thanks for savings my life, Memaw.  I look forward to see you both again...