I Still Miss YOU Grandma- Sudden Death- Rest in Peace

First, it is absolutely essential to stay in a state of grace vis a vis God.  I write about this with Grandma as she died suddenly of a heart attack.  Death is certain as we all know we will die.  Death is uncertain since (unless you are on death row) you have no idea when exactly you will die.  It is imperative that you stay in a state of grace in the Catholic Church since the time of death is uncertain.  If you are in a state of sin, get to confession right away. 

 Second, love your family and tell them that you love them.  You do not know when they will die.  I remember my wife waking me up from a nap and came to me and told me that she got off the phone with dad and told me that she had died.  So I never got to say goodbye.  Stay in touch with your family.  Tell them that you love them.  Do not sweat the small stuff.  Look at the big picture.  After Grandma died, I made sure to spend a lot of time with Nana, my other grandmother until she died 14 months after Grandma did.

 Finally, I wanted to talk about Grandma.  She lived a hard life going through the Great Depression, World War II, and a husband away during World War II.  She was a widow and a single mom from 1962 when my uncle was just six.  She had to work hard to get everything she got.  However, she never sweated having enough money since she trusted in God.  Also, she stayed out of debt her entire life.  (She carefully saved the war salary of Grandpa Sloan and they were able to buy a house and four acres in the later 1940’s where she lived the last 60+ years of her life debt free).  She “pinched pennies” every day of her life except when she was generous with her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren when we needed it.  She was a “hardass” as she was a strong disciplinarian.  She had a “bit bat paddle” and just the threat of it kept us in line.  She always helped family members when we needed it. 

 Grandma was tough as nails.  I remember going to her house every day in the summer of 2001 to study for the bar.  She fed me lunch every day and we would talk about things.  She gave me incentive to study since she kept the air conditioning off. 

 I remember how happy she was the day I got married.  She danced at my wedding reception and she had a “sip of beer”, apparently the first time she did either since Grandpa Sloan died almost 40 years earlier.  I wish, like Nana, she got to hold baby Andrew, born 10 months after she died.

I always enjoyed Sunday afternoons with her.  She would cook fried rice and fried

chicken.  Grandma always stayed in shape because she would cut the grass for her four acres all herself.  In the 90 degree heat of Charleston, SC, she had to stay in shape to do that until age 86.

 I do not know how to end this article other than to say “I love you Grandma.  I miss you Grandma.”  Rest in peace.