Take pride in your family thru chores & family meals.  My grandmother did.

Several years ago, when my grandfather was a young 85, he retired from the family farm equipment dealership to stay home and help care for my grandmother.  She had macular degeneration limiting her eyesight & was having difficulty hearing.  Yes, a hearing aide would have helped with that, but with her deformed, arthritic hands, she was unable to make adjustments to the volume as needed.  Her life had become very small with limited sight & sound.  And so, my industrious, intelligent, able bodied, loving Grandfather took over the household chores and went from running a successful business to running a home.  Piece of cake!

Well…..not really.  One day while visiting, after enjoying breakfast together & deciding what the day would hold, my grandfather acknowledge a little defeatedly that running a home was incredibly hard work.  He said that you plan out your day & then WHAMO! something throws the whole plan off course.  For example, it’s laundry day & while doing your laundry someone drops by for a visit keeping you from getting your chores done before it’s time to start dinner.

My mom & and I just giggled hiding our smiles while showing deep concern on our faces, nodding in true understanding of what every woman knows.  It’s hard to raise a family & run a household.  A lot harder than working in the “real world”.

It reminded me of a story my grandfather always told about my grandmother.  During the Sunday morning church service, the pastor elected my grandmother to make her famous, from scratch donuts for the very large youth group that night.  He did it so he could enjoy her very yummy donuts.  Donuts 10 times yummier than what can be purchased in any donut shop today.  Grandfather likes to tell this story because of his pride in her cooking.  She was the best cook in the county by far.  In a 2 week visit during the summer, I easily gained 7-10 pounds each time just because of how good everything on the table tasted.  The best part being her rolls & from scratch jelly.  Or was it dessert……

My grandmother’s immediate thought was, “I have exactly 4 hours to feed my family a Sunday dinner, clean up the mess, make sure the house is presentable to guests & run to the store for missing ingredients.”

Over 50 people showed up!  Parents dropping off their kids lingered a little long just to get a donut.  She managed to feed everyone having a few left over.  A feat almost as miraculous as feeding the 5,000.  But she did it of course all while in her Sunday dress & heels with her lipstick just perfect.

Things always ran smoothly at my grandmother’s from 3 full meals a day to a day’s outing to the Mississippi river to ski.  Everyone always had plenty, there was always a little left over, it was always done with flare, the mess was always cleaned up & she always looked amazing in her freshly pressed cotton skirt, button down top, Grasshopper white wedges & lipstick while doing it all.

So on this first birthday celebration without her, we celebrate her glamorously, simple life.  A life girls should be proud to emulate and boys respect.  A life where everyone felt loved & welcomed thru her effortless, hard work.  A life that quietly made an impact on other’s lives.  Happy Birthday Grandmother!