Nana

Her birthday was Monday, October 16th. She turned 93.

93! That's a long time to walk the face of this earth!

She grew up singing on the radio with her two sisters. Her daddy was a preacher and I remember every get together we had growing up, someone would play the piano (I think Aunt Jeanette)and old hymns would be sung. That is the reason I prefer the old hymns to today's more popular music.

She had 2 kids - both girls, 7 grand kids - 6 boys and 1 girl and 9 great-grand kids - 5 boys and 4 girls.

She was a bank teller when I was growing up. My mom took me to her bank on Halloween on year and everyone at the bank had dressed up. There was a co-worker dressed up as a big Indian Chief and I remember he scared me. She thought that was funny.

She wanted to teach my brother how to roller skate. There they were, both on skates, skating down Whiting Avenue. Their skates got tangled up and they both fell. She damaged her elbow pretty bad.

When she would sit down next to me at church, she would pat my leg in a certain rhythm. She told me they were love pats!

She always had gum in her purse.

When I was older and living on my own, there was a time that I would go to dinner with her once a week. It used to drive her crazy that I would park in front of the fire hydrant outside her apartment. She just knew I was going to get a ticket.

She outlived two husbands; My granddaddy - they were nuts about each other and her and a nice man named Desmond.

She died today.

My parents and my aunt were there with her.

The last several years have been hard with Dementia stealing her mind.

And when she got to Heaven this afternoon, I know she was greeted by Granddaddy, her sisters and my Uncle Wayne.

And I am sure that there is singing and dancing and no pain.

And I hope she tells Granddaddy that I named my daughter after him.

And I hope she looks down on me everyday and that she is proud of the person that I grew up to be. And that she knows that she helped make me that person.

And I hope she knows, without any doubt, that she was a great Nana and that I loved her very much

Enjoy Heaven, Nana! You deserve it!