Until That Moment, It Hadn’t Hit Me That She Was Really Gone…
“Almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.”
— Steve Jobs
The day after Valentine’s Day, my 91-year old grandmother passed away. She was a devoted mother and wife, a loving sister and grandmother. I visited my grandmother several times a year growing up, and visited her for the last time 2 months ago on the way to my parent’s house for the holidays.
I will never forget her love for dancing. She tap danced into her 90s for the Dancing Grannnies. Whenever my family visited, she modeled her new costumes, giving special attention to her fancy shoes. My sisters loved to try them on and dance around the house pretending they were princesses.
Her home made a perfect hide-and-go seek arena, with nook and crannies in every room. It drove my parents and grandmother crazy that my siblings and I jumped from couch to couch to avoid the molten lava in her basement — the reddish colored carpet.
Although devoid of lava, my grandmother’s backyard was full of adventure and finely manicured flowers. I received countless scrapes from venturing into the belly of the pine tree that feasted on badminton birdies, frisbees, baseballs, croquet mallets (that’s a long story) and more.
At the service, I felt a profound sense of love for her life and the sadness for her passing. As the family gathered around her and offered a parting prayer, a faucet of tears was turned on and poured from each and every eye. The family could feel the love that emanated from her life and her example. It didn’t hit me until that moment that she was really gone.
During my 7 hour drive from the funeral gave me an opportunity to ponder the preciousness and shortness of life. Nothing causes people to evaluate the impact of their lives like death.
She loved deeply and lived passionately. That is a life worth remembering. More importantly, that is a life worth living.