Grandma's Hands

Sad news from the Valley of the Sun came today as my Mother's Mother has passed away at 99.

This Iowa farm lady (pictured on one of a few visits she made to the Not So Vast Right Wing Ranch) was...

Amazing -- she flew back to visit my Mom as her daughters life was drawing to a close.

Wise -- her knowledge came from life and was well beyond the grade school education she was not allowed to complete because she was a girl.

Strong -- she kept going and persevered after burying her husband (in the early 1960s) as well as three of her 12 children.

Although I always loved my Grandmother, there was a time when I was young that I did not like her.

She was still living on the farm, which I did not enjoy because I was a big city of Des Moines kid, and she would yell at the dozens of grandkids for continually running in and out of the house.

I told her one time, on one of my visits to the Phoenix area, that I didn't like her much when I was growing up.

She smiled and said that was okay because she didn't care that much for me then either.

We both laughed hard at that.

Grandma loved that I had moved to the country.

I will miss her stories and insight, and I am sad she won't be able to celebrate 100 this fall, which I new she wanted, but she went peacefully and is reunited with her husband and children.