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Light a Candle
I have many fond memories of her are from a young age to present. Most of my weekends up to the age of 9 or 10 were spent at her house. Once I was helping run clothes through the ringer washer and got my hand caught, she grabbed my arm quickly and pulled it out. I cried and cried. She put her arms around me and hugged me until I stopped crying. I was always afraid of thunder storms; she would hold me on her lap and tell me it was okay till it stopped thundering.
Most of our weekends Aunt Loretta would take us to go shopping and hit some yard sales and go to thrift stores and the hostess store too. Grandma enjoyed this time with all of us.
We would go to church every Sunday with her and my Aunt Loretta and Aunt Linda. They wanted everyone to know about Jesus. She would wash my sister and I up and wash our hair. I remember many times hollering when she would comb it afterwards and she would say sit still I’m getting the tangles out.
They dressed us in the nicest clothes, shoes, and curl our hair. They would ask us about our lessons we learned and who was teaching our class. Then after church they would go visit the nursing homes and share god’s word with residents.
She always had time for her everyone. She was always cooking, cleaning, sewing quilts or ironing. I have the way her and my Aunt Loretta made meatloaf down pat and make mine the same way.
She also read her Bible a lot. How she loved Jesus! I remember her sitting in the rocking chair and reading it for what seemed like hours.
She would talk a lot on the phone to my Aunt Marzetta about the day’s events and such. I remember them coming over and my Grandma always joked around with my Uncle Frank. My cousin Byron always called her Mamaul. It was great!
The holidays at her house were the best! I remember her and my Aunt Loretta cooking pies, turkey, biscuits, gravy, stuffing mashed potatoes .It was wonderful. They would get the yellow footstool and put the tree on it and we would help decorate it. Then there would be presents everywhere come Christmas morning. It was a time of bliss, we got to see out whole family and spend time with them.
Sometimes I would wake up early in the morning about 4:30 or 5:00 am and there would be Grandpa and Grandma in their chairs in the living room, listening to bluegrass.
Grandma always knew I never ate when I first woke up and would often tell my Grandpa to leave me alone and let me wake up first before putting food in front of me. She would say “Now Alfred she just woke up give her some time”. He would and tell me its okay you wake up when you want. When I would be ready to eat he would tell my grandma and she would always make me scrambled eggs and cinnamon toast. It was the best! To this day my children love toast with cinnamon and sugar on it and I shared with them where it came from.
When I was little she would play games with me at the kitchen table and also taught me how to make paste with flour and water. My children thought this was the most awesome thing when they were small. When it was hot outside we would sleep beside Grandma on the floor and I would put my arm around her, I always felt loved, safe and secure with her.
We would take trips to West Virginia with her and Aunt Loretta sometimes Grandpa would go to visit family down in Fairplain. I loved these trips but I was afraid of the bridges. Grandma always soothed me when we were going over them. One time we went during the winter to visit Great Grandpa and Grandpa Fisher, I remember falling and falling the ground was slick. Grandma reached down with both hands and picked me up and helped me walk to the house.
We would stay up with her and my Aunt Loretta and watch Dallas, Falcon Crest and Fantasy Island on Friday nights. We also enjoyed watching the Sonny and Cher show too. I received a Cher doll for Christmas once and I told my grandma” I can’t keep the tangles out we need to cut her hair”. Guess what we did cut it just the way I wanted.
We would sit on the porch and play with Qweenie the dog and Grandma showed us how to snap beans, shuck corn and kill the horseflies. She would also cut up tomatoes for us and lots of mangos. Which I found out later were green peppers.
When we were put in foster homes, the first time it was my Aunt Loretta and Grandma who called the church to find each one of us a good family who took us in and raised us for 9 months. She dearly loved us all!
She also quilted a lot. She made beautiful, warm quilts out of old clothes. My son Timmy has one she made for me when I was a teenager. When he was smaller it got a hole in it. He worried about how to sew up the hole. We brought it to Grandma’s house in Laurelville and she showed him how to sew it. To this day he can sew just about anything. Thanks Grandma!
She canned everything under the sun! I was the sweet pickle sampler of the family, I loved it. She also made the best Cole slaw ever.
As an adult I would visit her frequently with my children. I would call when on my way and she would say is this Charly? I would say yes and she would say she missed me and was glad we were coming to visit. She had a special bond with my sons Joseph, Vancil and Timmy. They would always joke around about different things. Vancil was always her little preacher boy. She would tell them about smoking corn silk and other ornery things she did as a child ask them about school, girls, and what they liked to do
I remember one time her telling me a story about my brother’s young son locking himself in her bedroom and they would tell him to do one thing and he would do another. She laughed and laughed over that one.
She was an awesome cook! She made the best fried potatoes and biscuits I have ever eaten in my life. She used to make tomatoes and dumplings too it was the best!
When I grew up she always had a butter bowl full of biscuits waiting for me to take home if she knew I was coming to visit.
On one of my visits we decided to go shopping at the thrift stores and yard sales, it was the last day we had out together. She and I shared a love of pitchers and bowls. I bought her one and she bought me one. When we got home she gave me a green one with a turkey on it. I will remember this day for the rest of my life. We had such a good time! When she was getting weaker she insisted that I take the one I bought her home with me. I have all three now. Thank you Grandma!
She lived on her own in Laurelville for many years and was independent. She always had food ready on every visit to her house. She worried about anyone going hungry and many times had me take cereal and stuff home for my sons to eat or send me to the store to buy things to take home and eat.
On one visit we decided to have pizza ordered. I went and picked it up and we thought it smelled good but taking a first bite we both looked at each other and said EWW! Card board. We laughed so hard over that one!
She always said she wished she could do more. I think she did just fine and will always be my Hero!
The last time she opened her eyes wide and turned her head and looked at Joseph as if to say goodbye. My sons thought the world of their Great-Grandma. We have been so fortunate and blessed to have had her in all of our lives.
Grandma the most beautiful person I have ever known. My comfort is knowing that’s just your body in the casket, but your soul is with Jesus, and the Angels in Heaven.
Thank you for being the best friend I could ever have and doing everything you did for everyone. You never once complained and only had nice things to say about everyone. I can only hope someday to be the Grandma to my grandchildren that you were to me. I love you and miss you! You will forever be a part of my heart and soul. Thank you for everything!
