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Within the confines of this blog, you will find bits and pieces of the life and times of myself, my family and friend dear and near., far and wide, few and far between. You will find bits and pieces of my world, tho small to some, but huge to me. You will find everything from 'soup to nuts',; recipes, hobbies,crafts, gardenings,loves of my life, GrandLoves-a-Plenty, and even my pets... Sooo, if you can handle family life, enjoy the tour of my 'Stuffings'.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Grams, Warning!

Grams B, after a 1/2 mile walk to and from the mailbox, in the dead of winter. This picture was taken when she was 92. She refused a ride up the driveway. I hope I have her spunk at that age, that gives me some time. I sure miss this vivacious gal.

This little bit of prose has been around for quite some time, but I find myself relating to it more and more. It could be, that's exactly why I like it.

It is simply titled, " Warning," by Jenny Joseph

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat that doesn't go and doesn't suit me,
And I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired,
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other peoples gardens
And learn to spit!
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickles for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats
And things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry,
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.

We will have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old and start to wear purple.


I guess this getting older isn't all bad, after all. I remember Grams B. and some of her curious habits. Each time she went to the store, no matter what, she always, always came home with white bread and bananas and white thread. Her sewing drawers had more spools of white thread. I always wondered, as a young girl, what is she going to do with all of that white thread. She didn't sew much, mostly did occasional patching. I don't ever remember seeing her truss a chicken., so I asked her once. Her reply was, "You can never have enough white thread." There was no other explanation. To this day, I'm still curious.

I also had asked her, to what did she attribute to her longevity and her good health? She told me to remember always to use it, or loose it, but not abuse it. She repeated this whenever she saw me limping across the yard when my joints and back started to give way. Grams also told me she ate two eggs a day, a banana, white toast, coffee, and a sip of wine never hurt. I don't know why that surprised me. I still think she may have been kidding as she a smirk came across her face. She warned to always stay active, as she jumped on the back of my brothers motorcycle in her late 70's. Don't be lazy as she yanks grapevine out of the trees in her 80's, and remember to pray. Now I understand.

Grams believed in using plants for medicinal purposes. There was peppermint for tea for her upset stomach, chamomile too. And pansies just for your salad tho they would purify your blood. I never paid much mind as a kid, thinking it was all nonsense. Now I find myself wanting to hear more.
Grams gave birth to 8 babies, at home. She saw a doctor for the first time in her life at the young age of 92. She lived a life full of spunk and adventure. She passed away years back just shy of her 102nd birthday. I wonder if I have inherited her zest for life, her long-life genes.

Do I want to live that long? Only if I still have all my wits about me like she did and only if my health holds true. I do not wish to be a bother to any of my children. Life is short on this earth, but not at the expense of a loss of dignity.

For now, I will be content to live busily but quiet, as I have, enjoying the sunshine and the beauty around me with my family and friends to laugh with. I will someday wear purple, (well, maybe), and for certain, I will run my stick on the railing. I already know how to spit and I have been known to wear my red slippers in the rain. I won't eat 3 lbs. of sausages for they upset my delicate system, ha...but chocolate covered raisins sounds like a good substitute, don't you think? I do not need to make up for the sobriety of my youth, as I've been there, done that, no more. I already hoard pens and pencils, and love little boxes, even empty. People who know me, will not be shocked or surprised if I should wear purple. If I were to wear a lil black dress and suddenly go out dancing, ....maybe a surprise. Life is just too good to miss out on all the fun.

God Bless You All as Life Passes You Good Fortune and Health So, Dance
Thanks for stopping
BlessYourHearts


24 comments:

Anonymous said...

You have such wonderful memories of your grams. She had a good outlook on life too. By the way I love chocolate covered raisins. I buy them infrequently because I don't know when to stop eating them!

Paula said...

She sure sounds like a special lady... I had a "Gram" in my life too and GOSH do I miss her!

Osage Bluff Quilter said...

What a neat Grams yu had!

And I love chocolate covered raisins.

My Mom had a neighbor at her assited living home, who died last month at 103, the sign on her door said "yourest, you rust" and she was active and alert up to a week before she died!

Betsy Banks Adams said...

What a wonderful tribute to your Grams. There's longevity in both my family and George's --so we hope to live long and healthy lives. BUT--who knows????

My mother lived til she was 91; Daddy died at age 79 (almost 80). George's Dad is still alive and is 98 1/2. He reminds me of your Grams. He always says that if you don't use it, you will lose it. Mom Adams is 90--almost 91.

I want to live a long life IF only i am healthy and have my wits about me. My sweet brother died last year at age 86---but he didn't have any quality of life left the last year or two. Everytime I would see him, I would cry when I left. He would never have chosen to live like that.... SO????? Who knows what will happen to us---but we do need to stay as healthy as possible, don't we?

Hugs,
Betsy

www.thewhitefarmhouse2.blogspot.com said...

Love this tribute to your grandma. My great grandma was 101 when she died. She always said that she wanted to be 100 before she died. If you asked her why she just shrugged. She was legally blind, but still sewed clothes for the orphanage by hand. She sure could see where you kept the cookies when your back was turned though. I love her and still miss the little character.

Love the poem! That is how I want to be when I get ancient. Already old, so the next step is ancient! I want to be remembered as a character like I remember my great grandma and grandma. My hubby says there is no worry to that!

Paula said...

I've already got my purple blouse ready. Love this entry and your memory of your Grams.

jack69 said...

What a great post. Loved every word of it. Grams sounded like 'OUR' kind of lady. I wonder why we can't all be that self knowing. Loved the poem, just figured you already cheated and learned how to spit!! haha! I used to joke to my SIL about tripping the one's that bugged her with her stick when she got older. HA!

Such a great tribute, I have never known any one close who lived to be that age. Maybe you will be the first, call me!! hahahaha!

Love you lady and hope you can rival Grams.
Sherry & Jack in sunny Florida!

Dianna said...

What a precious precious post, Dar. Your Grams B. brought back memories of my Grandma that I've blogged about in the past. She passed away just 4 months shy of turning 100.

Thank you so much for sharing your memories with us!

Hugs to you

Helen said...

She sure was a lively 92. I hope you can do the same and be a spry and healthy. Helen

Darla said...

What sound advice from your wise Gram....

Sunny said...

Wonderful post Dar, and great advise. I can relate to many of those things already .... like the use it or lose it. I think Ive already lost some this past year :(
Thanks for leaving a comment on my blog. I usually write what I am up yo under my "Sunny girl" on the side-bar and whats cooking under my woodstove there as well. Check it out...

Have a blessed day Girl, and stay warm up north there!

Lucy said...

Dar, I have been trying o get back to you but still lost in space. Not on facebook a lot, in fact probably 5 times and then not for long. I was so happy to have your little grandson think I was his Grandma. That has stuck with me and I really wanted to get back sooner but did not get back to anyone and then Google had us change our password. I was furious over that because they don't stay. Oh well; more of lifes hassles.

Cher' Shots said...

When I was real little I used to think Granny B was so stern and serious. But as we got older I realized she was a much softer, loving woman. So many memories rekindled. I miss Granny B too!
'love & hugs from afar'

Lynilu said...

Any way you look at it, your Grams was a wonderful role model. Good memories and lots of good advice passed own by her. :)

I agree that if my wits stay about me, living long is a good thing. My mom developed Alzheimer's in her 80s, and I missed her for several years before she quit breathing. You were enormously lucky! :)

Suburban Girl said...

What a great story! And I agree, peppermint does wonders for my stomach upsets!

quiltmom anna said...

Your gran sounds like a grand lady. My own was pretty special too- she lived to the age of 86 when was taken from us suddenly in a car accident. She loved life and had her wits about her right until the end. She was still living on the farm she came to when she married my grandfather.
Thanks for sharing your lovely story.
I love the Old woman poem - it is one of my favorites.
Regards,
Anna

Kellie said...

Hello Dar ~ I absolutely loved this post!

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

It was a remote controlled helicopter. It was quite small about two feet long.

An 90 year old gram went walking and got stuck in the mud up to her waist.

Lucky gal, after 2 days, her grndson found her,

She could still joke, when they carried her out on a stretcher. She said, she booked them to carry her out in her casket when she died, not when she was still alive.

A Primitive Homestead said...

Wonderful memories of your Gram. What a gal she was. Grams B had a beautiful smile & kind eyes. Reminds me of my Gram. Gram died at 76 eight yrs ago. She had more energy than I do now. Must be true. Use It or lose it! Blessings!

~mel said...

Grandma was a character! That picture of her ~ with her hair in curlers, wearing that white scarf and that brown jacket.... reminds me of how many times I told her she shouldn't dress like that during hunting season and walking down the driveway like she did. She'd just laugh and say, "won't they be surprised when they shoot me and find out I'm not a deer ~ at least not a four legged one".

Danielle & Noah said...

Love the story about Grams! Hope everyone gets better so Noah and I came come for a visit! Love, Danielle & Noah

Gerry's Soap N Stuff said...

Hi Dar, I found you on Jack's blog. The post about your Gram warmed my heart. It reminded me of my own grandmother who lived to be 98 years old. She was still fairly strong, then had stroke which we did not expect.
Bless your heart too, Dar...
Gerry

crochet lady said...

Sounds like good advice from a great lady.

Happy New Year Dar!

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful post about your grandma. I enjoyed reading this. :)