Gloria

This is a mother's day that I won't soon forget. It's my wife's second one as a full blown participant and this morning we walked across the stage in commitment to raising our precious baby daughter, Laila, in a loving household teaching her about the love of Jesus. There we stood with over thirty very young children. There was cooing, drooling, arm waving, shy head ducks and surprisingly no screaming or crying, and each parent made a great commitment to lead the next generation in the right direction. That isn't why I'll remember this Mother's Day. I'll remember that, but that's not why I'll remember this mother's day.

It was Sunday nap time and the phone rang and I heard my sister's voice on the answering machine. Through the fog of that vice grip feeling I get in my head when I've napped too long, I thought she said something about grandpa and then the message ended. I froze. I love my grandpa and when family leaves a vague phone message the news is never good. When I finally got up the courage to call her back she explained that they had had Mother's day lunch with mom and grandma and that although grandma (who has been battling alzheimers for years) was very quiet, my brother had made her laugh several times. They had helped grandpa get her into the handicap accessible van and taken off. My sister stopped, choked up a bit, and then continued to explain that grandma had experienced cardiac arrest and was gone.
Mother's day of all days...it was her 59th mother's day and she had cared lovingly for her children all of those years until the alzheimer's turned the tables. I'll never forget her caring for us as well.

We loved staying at grandma and grandpa's house growing up. My cousin, Ryan, and I were best friends and we would continuously conive ways to stay over whenever we could. She was the voice of reason when we wanted to swim in her swimming pool in the middle of the night and it was only 60 degrees outside but grandpa had said we could. She was the one who made us weed their huge garden or spread hay out on the strawberries when all we wanted to do was play in the creek or swim. She was also the one to have an amazing breakfast ready for us when we came down in the morning. The one who, although she had just done her hair, would come out and swim with us anyway (with this ridiculous swim cap on) while grandpa was away at work. I remember she made us wait until grandpa got home one time when Ryan and I were going to "help" by painting grandpa's beater old pickup with the paint we found in the garage. Oh and how she used to sing beautifully around the house while she did her work or how her piano playing accompanied some of our family gatherings. I still remember her leanning over to help me find my notes on that same keyboard.

I could go on and on with the memories and family could fill in the details with stories that would make you laugh and cry alike, but this is a blog and not a book so that is all you get. She was born on 01/22/33 and my mom started grandma's motherhood 59 years ago. She is survived by her husband, five children, twelve grand children and six great-grand children. Every one of us has missed her since the alzheimers took her mind, but there is an emptiness in my gut today that her death has brought and our family will grieve our loss this week in a real way.

Her name was Gloria and whenever I heard it spoken I always used to think of that Christmas song. She had lost that beautiful voice she had once had, but I imagine she's singing before her King as loud and long as she ever had. I bet she'll have a garden to work in soon while she sings since it is spring time. She'll lay delicious foods before her maker that she has grown and prepared as she sings "gloria" to her risen Savior whom she can now see for the very first time.

I'll miss her.