Super Grandma
I’ve been thinking about my grandmothers lately.
My grandmas are long gone off to their next adventures but they left a legacy of love.
We often went weekly over to Grandma’s Pike’s (My mother’s mother) house for a Sunday meet up. If the aunts and uncles were there we would end the night with singing around the piano with Uncle Gene on the fake mic and all of us kids gathering around to join in. Grandma encouraged us to sing and I remember being asked to stand up before everyone to sing with my younger sister, Paula, “The ants go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah!” I was very shy but loved to sing.
We probably got some of our musical ability from Grandma Pike as she played piano and sang… and for sure we got the ‘sillies’ passed down from her has I remember her doing anything to make us laugh (usually while wearing a ‘straight face’) like having tufts of Kleenex sticking out of her ears while playing it.
She would have us over for lunch and serve a ‘mixed tray’ of sweet pickles, celery sticks filled with Cheese Whiz, meats, crackers, etc., each on a separate plate. Our mother and all of us girls still serve up our own version of ‘mixed trays’ and they are fun to enjoy!
I loved my Grandma’s many pies at Christmas like her mincemeat , pumpkin, and apple (served with cheddar cheese). Yum!
And of course we still laugh about the time Paula and I hiked from St. Clair Beach to her house that one summer. We weren’t very old ( 10 and 12?) when we walked about 25 miles …..and the ‘big bad wolf” found us. (Story for another time.)
I also loved my “Nonny” too ( my Dad’s mother) from England whose name I adopted as my own when I became a grandmother.
She came to Canada a couple of times and she was feisty and also had a good sense of humour.
We had the chance to visit her when we flew over to England with my parents and she was even more feisty at 92! I remember we were out to dinner at a restaurant and the host came over to her and said , “Looks like you’ll be getting a letter from the Queen soon!” With that remark she lightly whacked him with her cane and said, “ I certainly am NOT. I’m not ONE HUNDRED!!!” So funny.
I mostly learned how to be a super grandmother from my own mother though. Although she lived/lives miles apart from our children she was very present in our lives.
We visited when we could, sent off current packs of photos when we couldn’t, and watched the kindness and love with which she interacted with our four in both cases.
She came out to help me with my firstborn and calmed me down when my baby wouldn’t stop crying one day. She taught me to be calm and creative, to share my musical ability (she also plays piano, percussion, and sings beautifully. She paints as well!) and my artistic talents too.
I love being a grandma or a “Nonny” to my 6 boys.
It’s …..SUPER!
