the essence of a Rose

This photo was taken in 2009/2010 over the holidays while I was visiting my aunt Bonnie and Uncle Jack in Qatar with my parents and grandmother. Here my mom and grandma are taking the buggy for a leisure ride while dad, Uncle Jack and I take the quads into the desert on the sand dunes. While we were on this trip, this same day actually my grandma and I also went on a short camel ride. Did I mention that my grandma was in her early 80s on this trip?

My grandmother, the city girl turned northerner.

She was the youngest of 4 girls, until at the age of ten the family welcomed a new addition a baby brother. Over the years I have heard countless tales and antics of her younger years. Then in her late teens she met my grandfather, they married and my grandfather moved her away from her family and the city to this 'god forsaken middle of nowhere' northern town. One of my favorite tales is when my grandma said she spent her first year of marriage in tears nearly everyday, adjusting from city girl to rugged northerner wasn't easy. My grandfather would often come home from work curious to see what crazy antics my grandma had gotten into that day.

My grandparents had 2 boys just over a year apart in age. They would have had more children if my grandmother wouldn't have been so sick after my uncle was born. My favorite story of when my dad and uncle were younger is that my dad was bugging his little brother and I guess really annoying the shit out of him, so little jack went into my grandmothers sewing basket got a needle and poked my dad with it. LOL. instant quiet! My dad didn't like needles, still doesn't, but when he was little he used to faint when he got stuck with one. Uncle Jack sure had some smarts on how to get his older brother to be quiet. Bet at times my grandmother wished she could have poked my dad with a needle to hush him up now and then.

My Uncle and Aunt didn't have any children, and my parents just had the two of us. But fortunately my grandmas extented family -her sisters and brothers are some of my favorite cousins amoung my giant extended family. This Thanksgiving weekend I'm going south to celebrate the holiday with her sister June's family. My decision of going south this weekend was simple, why stay in town and fake it through the weekend with my family and the tension between sister-in law, Kelsie and me when I can go south to be with family that I can be myself and who are glad to see me there. Plus I really do enjoy being around Great-Aunt June's family. And if its something I've learned in the past year is that life is short, and we never have as much time as we think we do.

A year ago October 1, my grandmother passed away. It was completely unexpected, in fact the day before Kelsie and I had gone to dinner with her, then her and I went shopping, little did I know that would be the last little shopping trip I'd have with her.

My grandmother lived her life with no fear, nothing to look back on and say, I should have done this or that. If she wanted to do something she did it. She was adventurous, outgoing, the complete polar opposite of shy. She was kind, fun, generous, chatty, upbeat, friendly with a carefree spirit. Things I can only hope to strive to become more like.

My grandmother was the last of my grandparents to pass on. And though I know my grandmother patiently waited 11 years to be re-joined my my grandfather in eternity I am glad to have gotten those 11 years to fill with more memories. I was blessed in my life to have gotten to know 5 grandparents when others don't get that opportunity.  Nanna and Poppa; my mom's parents, Grandma and Grandpa; dad's parents, and Great-Grandma; my grandmother's mum.