Visiting Granny Tanny

As most of you know by now, Kyrie, Grandma, and I(Rebecca) went to Mankato to visit Great-Grandma Ruth. She of course had never met Kyrie, so it was natural to introduce the two of them. We got off to a great start and because my mom and I talked the whole way down, the five hour trip seemed more like one hour. We arrived in Grandma's room and were met with a loving smile. She was so happy to see us but thought we were supposed to have come a day earlier and said that she had been waiting for us since Friday! Kyrie did very well chatting with Great-Grandma but when we went to the Hotel to relax for the evening, she decided that she was not going to let us relax! She cried for about two hours...loudly. We tried everything to calm her or comfort her, but she must have missed her own bed because she was just not happy with anything. This is very unlike Kyrie because she is usually a happy girl. Finally, we got her off to sleep in bed with me and she slept until 8:00 the next day. We went back to Grandma's to visit before heading home. Again we were met with a warm smile. Grandma had been sick so she was not quite herself. She was very confused at times and forgetful. How I wished she would chatter on like she used to when I was younger. She had so much to say. Now today she was constantly falling asleep in her chair. I am so happy we visited her though. She and I have always had a close bond and I remembered back to when I would go to visit her for a week in the summer. She would take me out for brunch and let me drink coffee with as much sugar and creamer as I wanted. She would take me to the movies and let me pick out a special toy. I have so many fond memories of her. I especially loved the stories she used to tell about the "good old days" and wish sometimes that the world today could be a little more like that time. No one had to worry about their children being kidnapped, there was more harmony between people, and friends really cherished each other. She was married at age 18 to a man who was 20 years older than her. She loved him with all her heart until he went to be with Jesus. She has lived a long time without him and has said that she is excited to see him again someday. I wish all of you who read this could meet her. She is one terrific lady. She lived through the depression, raised a family while running a hotel, and through it all, never complained but was grateful for all she was given. Now that she is older, and will turn 90 in June, actually she and I have the same birthday, I am so grateful that she is my Grandma, and all the wonderful things she has taught me about life, family, faith and love. I gave her a hug good-bye with Kyrie, and she waved with slight tears in her eyes as we headed out the door. If only more people could be like my Grandma, the world would be a much nicer place.


We left Mankato and headed home to Grand Rapids but in Aitkin got caught in a terrible snow storm. It took us two hours to get home when we were 50 miles from our destination. We drove through nail-biting slippery roads, blowing wind, crazy drivers, cars in the ditch, and to add even more drama to the mix, a deer wandered out to greet us. We did finally make it though, safe and sound, with a happy memory of our weekend with us.