A Chapter to Revisit
My grandma recently went home after staying with us for a month. To give a little context, my grandma and I are very close. We facetime almost every morning. We have inside jokes. We play cards. We build each other up. She is one of my favorite people and I feel blessed to still have her in my life. She is also a difficult person for me to write about…maybe because there is too much to put into words? Maybe it’s the fact that she has always built up my writing so much that I don’t want the sentences to run flat and not truly express how special of a person I think she is. Regardless of why that is, something special happened during her visit. It was a perspective shift on my end. I realized that she isn’t just my special person, but for my kids as well. They call her Gigi (great-grandma). When a person stays at your house for a month, they start to become a part of the daily routine. The kids had come to expect her to sing good morning to them when they came down the stairs. I had grown used to having someone to share my morning coffee with and a round of gin rummy.
I hadn’t thought about how rare and wonderful it was to have her for an extended stay until after she was back home. All the sudden I had “tasks” that needed my attention and my time. I was so “busy.” Why do we do that to ourselves? Yes, it’s important to vacuum the floors and do the laundry…but it’s also important to realize it’s okay to take an hour to play cards with your grandma because one day you will wish for one more hand. I was telling a friend that my grandma had been staying with us and was going home soon. Misty-eyed, she reiterated what I had already been feeling, how lucky I was to be able to share that time together. I read a quote on Pinterest after she went home that said this,
“Even though you didn’t make it to the end of my story,
I will always have the corner folded down on your page…
because it was one of my favorites.”
It’s inevitable, and so is life, that we all don’t make it to the end of each other’s stories, but while we are in this chapter, I want to read it over and over again. I want to laugh until I cry with each fold. I want a smile that radiates from my bones as I watch my children learn how to play cards. I cherish the memories of the times my six-year-old beat us all after just learning how to play. I want to thank the Lord that he blessed me with such incredible God-fearing grandparents who prayed before each meal and went to church every Sunday. Traditions only become traditions when we pass them down. What a beautiful gift—a grandmother who loves Jesus, cards, and sweet treats. I love that not only is she a massive part of my story, but she will also always be a very important chapter for my kids.
Take some time to call someone you love and who has been a part of your story that you will always have bookmarked. Tell them thank you.
Have a wonderful weekend and as always, happy reading.
Katie Marie
