My Grandmother Lois passed away in November and all of the family gathered together in Georgia this past weekend for her memorial service. It was a wonderful time of memories and catching up – I think she would have been pleased to see that the extended family enjoy one another so very much.
My memories of Grandma Lois make me smile. I remember the Christmas presents – one year is was a box of assorted Goody’s combs – and my favorite birthday present as a child – a wooden tool bench that let me pound pegs from one side to the other and included a miniature hammer, just my size. She also gave me a fantastic silver spoon with an “S” monogram on it as a wedding present – along with an admonishment that I shouldn’t have planned my wedding so quickly. If she had had more time to plan she would have been able to attend!
I also remember the summer that she visited us, in the wilds of Arizona, when my sister and I asked her why, with the temperature over 100 degrees, she wouldn’t wear shorts instead of long pants.
“A lady,” she said (in a voice that led me to believe she thought it was a far stretch to find a lady rather than a cowgirl anywhere in her present surroundings), “never shows anything that is not her best asset!”
Grandma Lois was a character! She never admitted her age, refused to be called “Grandma” by the majority of her grandchildren because she was too young for that title, and never accepted the senior citizen’s discount. We can neither confirm nor deny her actual age, but we believe she was 95 at the time of her death.
I love Grandma Lois because she was a true character. She brought life and vitality and opinion into every room she graced. She is an example to me of someone who faced challenges in life with strength and dignity. Married young to a widower with three rambunctious boys (my dad was the youngest of the three) and then widowed herself with two more children after less than two decades of marriage, I wonder if she ever felt adrift in her world?
If she did, I imagine she would never admit it. Two words that were used to describe her at the memorial were “Stubborn” and “Determined.”
My cousin Quentin was the one who used those words to describe Grandma Lois. She delivered the description with a fond smile, then followed it with the acknowledgement that pretty much all the women in the Story family can be described as Stubborn and Determined.
I was so glad my husband was sitting with me! Now I can honestly prove that I am genetically, culturally predetermined to be headstrong!
So, that is the update on the beginning of our trip to Georgia. I will add more shortly, along with photos of the girls first beach experience. In the meantime, I will simply enjoy the memories of Grandma Lois and hope that when my passing comes I will have left as deep and distinct impression on the people around me as she has left.
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