I miss my Grandma.

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Hey guys. This Christmas was the first one I spent without my Grandma. I havn't really posted anything about her on facebook because I did not want to upset anyone who knew her. I did a tribute speech for her funeral. I am going to put it here so you can have your lives touched by her life as well. I'm Right Here. My Grandmother always had a sence of humour. No matter what situation we were in, there was usually a snappy punch line. This occurred last week, while I was sitting with her by myself at the hospital. The nurse came in to check on her. She was asking all of the normal questions until she got to "Do you know where you are?" And my Grandmother very indignantly said: "Of course I do!. So the nurse asked: "Okay Donna. Where are you?" And she came back with: "I'm right here!" Although we shared a laugh at the joke, I can' help but think back on the forty-five years Grandma and I have spent together and realize that the statement that she casually made as a joke actually applied to her entire life. When her mother had to go to work outside the home and a faithful daughter was needed to take care of her father and brothers and the house, she was right there. They didn't have knee pads back then, so when you scrubbed the floor on your hands and knees, it was a major sacrifice. When her husband and kids came along and the years brougtht hardship and poverty, she was right there. I can immagine the insurmountable amount of baking and canning that went on. News flash.... Scrubbing pickles is still nasty. When her eldest daughter gave birth to, not one, but two blind children, she was right there. One of my earliest memories is of her leaning over my crib singing rockaby baby in a voice that we would all make fun of as we grew older. When her father was diegnosed with cancer and came home to live out the last three weeks of his life which turned into two years, she was right there. I don't think they had pull-ups, pary wipes, or ensure back then. When her two yungest daughters were taken two soon and she was feeling oceans of her own pain, she was still righkt There. When it came time for summer vacations, march breaks, towel tents, home made pizza, cheese and bacon sandwiches on the broiler, dinners at the red Rooster, and unique varieties of candy and icecream from Laura Cecorde's, she was right there, even when our music was too loud. When called upon to standup to bullyingt teachers and false friends, she was right there, even when that meant sharing a narow infermery bed with my brother. As a provider of amazing Christmases, Graduation parties, roasting marshmellows over the barbicue, Sunday meals, after school hang out spots, and an escort for booking it from the camp site to the nearist bathroom, she was right there. Most of the time we made it. As an attender of concerts, Track meets, and browny teas, she was right there, even when I embarrassed her by shouting her age infront of everybody. When It came to spending hours infront of the V.C.R. making sure we didn't miss any of our shows when we were in boarding school: She was right there, even though she thought Sandford and Son was really annoying. When it came to helping make sure we had all of the books we needed for school and recreation, she was right there, even though she would sometimes forget she was recording and make side coments of her own about the characters, or burst into uncontrolable laughter at the funny bits without pausing the recording. Once we got interested in the blue Jays, she was right there. I can still see Grandma and Erik in the living room, putting a puzzle together or eating sun flower seeds while an audio book or the game was on. When it came to midnight talks, Morning coffee sessions, emergency trips on foot or by cab to help mannage a crices, she was right there, even when my Mother Broke her ankle, and there were five children and a house to care for. When the army of teenagers needed a place to stay during high school, she was right there, delux school lunches and all. When i was burned out on university, she was right there, saying: "If it doesn't make you happy, don't do it.", even when following that proclamation meant dealing with mental illness in her home for the next four years. On the morning I announced to her over coffee, that I wanted to take up sky diving, she was right there. Imagine my surprise and treppidation when she told me I couldn't do it unless I took her along. If any of us had a financial need to be filled, she was right there. If any of us needed a break from addulting: She was right there. I can still taste the cheese melts an icecream. Even in the past five years, when I needed an extra hug, A chocolate eating and lotto scratching budy, or a place for my cats to stay, even though she hated them, she was still right there. I can picture it now, when the father called her to come and celibrate at the throan with him for ever, her heart would have cried in joy: "I'm right here!" I want to live the rest of my life by her example. Whenever I follow one of her peaces of lovingly wise advise, I'll know she's still right here. Then, when the time comes for me to go home, and I cast my crown at Jesus' feet, I'll look around, just like I did when I was a little kid in a shopping mall and I'll hear that familiar voice. "I'm right here."