Nyssa and Grandma
"Our birthdays are feathers in the broad wing of time." ~ Jean Paul Richter (German Novelist and humorist, 1763-1825)Today is my mother's birthday. I am not a diplomat so not only do I remember her birthday, I remember her age. She is 77 years young today, September 14th. Annie Lorane Brown, only child of Grady and Zula Brown, born in Roanoke, Virginia. She remembers hearing Roosevelt tell the country of the attack on Pearl Harbor in a special radio address. She lost a cousin there. Mom grew up during wartime when sugar, rubber tires and nylons were rationed. She tells stories of teenage girls drawing lines down the backs of their calves to simulate seamed nylons. (Continued)
After high school (senior picture above) she worked a year before going off to Wilmore, Kentucky where she attended Asbury College. Here she met Loren William Gould, fell in love and brought him home to Virginia to meet her parents. I'm sure he was disoriented being so far from the Illinois farm, but he loved her and asked her to marry him. He proposed beneath the large electric man-made star on top of Roanoke's Mill Mountain.
She has two children born nine years apart and finally after 33 years a grand-daughter, Nyssa. She is a grandmother through and through. When Nyssa was little Mom made bread in her bread machine and while it was still hot, she sliced it, buttered it and hand fed the bread to Nyssa. So, of course Nyssa was spoiled. That is what grandma's are for. Mom's mother spoiled me and she spoils Nyssa.
Mom has a new best friend, Nicky. He loves her. They are two of a kind, both love to sleep. He makes his way to her bed early in the morning and takes his place at the bottom, on her feet. She says her feet are so warm in the morning, she doesn't want to get up. He sits with her while she knits and rolls over on his back so she can rub his tummy.
Now she has slowed down a lot. A hip and shoulder have been replaced and in another week a knee replacement is planned. She battles diabetes, kidney damage and heart damage with high blood pressure. We have made great strides in getting these under control this year. Now, we go through a whole check list before leaving the house; hearing aid, teeth, glasses, cane, have we got everything? So today is her day. Her son and grand-daughter better come up with something, I have reminded them. Dad had to be reminded as well. It sort of came up quickly for him this year. I expect he will arrange some kind of special dinner out. Hopefully, she won't cheat too much on her carbs.
We want her to live for a long time hence. She tells us, in her own style with a twinkle in her eye, "When you know for sure that my time here on earth is about over I only ask one thing....give me a big moist chocolate cake and let me eat the whole thing." OK, fine, but not for a long while yet.
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