My mom's eulogy about my Great- Grandma Sally:
"Let me start by saying Pastor Greg asked me to share a few
stories about my grandma. Hesitantly, I wanted to say no- but really, how could
I not? 90 years, really? So here are a few memories.
My earliest memory of my grandma was the special drawer of
her china hutch that held the fruit candy slices which I loved! We could have
any except the yellow ones as those were her favorite!
My grandma served as a nurse for over 40 years. When I was
a young girl, on special weekends I would get to go with her to ARC where she
would pass meds and care for the handicap. Oh how they loved her and she them.
The
year I got my driver’s license was the same year that my grandfather got cancer-
the freedom to drive then just seemed like an excuse to go somewhere but I see
now that the Lord already had His hand on what I was watching. You see, I saw a
wife caring for her husband. I watched her be love to him as she cared for and
watched endless Harry Carry games with him even though she hated baseball! I
now have also seen my mother model that same love for my father through his
illness. My grandparents were married as many years as my parents are now; 42
years of precious love. My grandmother would describe Howie as “fresh.”
She was an amazing seamstress. She made
endless things from wedding dresses to many of her own clothes. She made
beautiful satin pillow cases which we all have- she claimed this was how to
keep a good hair do all week! She taught many to sew, including a special
friend Judee. Judee says that it was in my grandmother’s home that she learned
not only to sew beautiful things but how to love and be loved.
Her
faith was something she stood firm on, and it was her home that I saw prayer
modeled at every meal. As a wedding gift, my grandmother received a picture of
Jesus looking down on the world over her bed. This stayed over her bed
everywhere she moved until her last breath. That picture was very special to
her and I would often talk with her about the comfort that praying brought her.
Both of my grandmothers modeled the importance of church to me but growing up
my parents really only went on Christmas and Easter- Chreasters, sometimes
mother’s day too so we did not let grandma down. At this time I did not
understand that I needed Jesus as my Savior. It wasn’t until 30 that the Lord
called my name loud enough that I finally listened! My grandmother got to watch
my conversion from just going to church to falling in love with Jesus. She saw
that the words from my mouth, especially in the beauty shop where she would
often say, “Tami, don’t say such things!” had truly changed. The language I
used to speak- swearing and using the Lord’s name in vain had now completely
changed to praise for His name and His death for me. The Lord in His divine
plan left her with us for her to see an entire family changed for the glory of
her Savior! She has seen her son in law, daughter, and grandchildren come to
fall in love with her Jesus.
One
day in the beauty shop years after my grandfather had died she had started going
dancing with her friend Choc. She informed us all that if he wanted anything
more from her that he needed to marry her. This chick was not ok with sex
outside of marriage! Just as she did not know what would come out of my mouth,
we never knew what would come out of Sally’s mouth either! She was our every
Thursday morning entertainment in my beauty shop from when she drove herself
and shouldn’t have been, always late and always some old persons fault as they
drove too slow, to coming on the mini bus and they driver never drove the right
way! It has been my most precious privilege to do this beautiful woman’s hair
for 22 years, and to do her final one yesterday. She never missed a week of
getting her hair and nails done. One day in the nursing home I asked her if the
other ladies had someone come and do their hair to which she replied, “No, just
the ritzy people!” For her 90th birthday I brought purple nail
polish because she liked the color purple. She was really hesitant to let me
put that on her nails as she was very worried it was too bright and
inappropriate! My, how generations have changed.
I
am sad to say that there have been many days I prayed for the Lord to take her
home and out of her suffering. She survived so much- had one kidney, two times
cancer, buried two husbands and a son, along with a very crooked spine with
painful arthritis. She lived on her own until 89; still cooking, or as we would
say, “regularly poisoning herself,” as a woman from the depression era who
would never throw anything away. I am thankful the Lord did not answer my
prayers because the years that He has left her here has shown me a soft side of
her as she really finally allowed others to care for her and she was no longer
in constant back pain which left her very short and snappy. I would regularly
find her in her room in the nursing home staring at her picture of Jesus and
she would say to me, “His eyes are amazing!” One of the many times she was very
sick I had written a verse from Isaiah for her and put it on the wall next to
her bed where she left it. Isaiah 46:4- Even to your old age and grey hairs I
am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you. I
will sustain you and I will rescue you.
It
gives me such comfort to know my grandma understood her rescue came from Jesus’
death for her. He rescued her from this life into eternity on Sunday but not
until she had completed all He had for her to do. Friday, the last day she was
really awake, I went to be with her. As we had some precious time talking about
what the Lord had waiting for her, she told me that she had suffered this long
because He still had something left for her to do here. We prayed, we cried,
and then her door opened. It was Patti the cleaning lady, to which she said,
“Hi Sally, it’s just me Patti the cleaning lady.” My gram said, “Come here, I
want to scold you.” She grabbed her hand and continued, “Every week you come in
and say “it’s just me the cleaning lady,” but I want you to know you are not
just that, you are my cleaning lady and I love you.” To which Patti replied
with, “I’m sorry Sally, I won’t say that anymore.” My grandma then responded
with, “and I am sorry I have not told you that. I have wanted to tell you for a
while.” We were all in tears and as I told her goodbye, I said, “Gram, maybe
that was the last thing here the Lord had for you to do.”
I
could only pray that I will obey Him, be a faithful, loving wife and leave this
legacy for my children and grandchildren and finish as well as she did.
I
will be forever grateful to the Lord for Hospice and the staff at Luther Manor
who were Jesus with skin on to my Gram when we could not be with her. Also to
her incredibly faithful, patient, granddaughter Arianna who was a constant
companion to grandma. They will never know how much this helped my mom when she
could not be there.
I
read this saying and it reminded me of her life, because her room could not
have fit one more loved one in it as she passed away. This is what she passed
down-
We’re
a flash in the pan, all of us are, but once we are a mother we never stop
reflecting God, mother love, the way we go to them when they call, the way we
pass it down.
I
tell you about it so you remember to watch how God presses into our lives with
these children, children show us faith in our capacity to love.
Sometimes
there is so much mess in the journey that we can’t see straight but even in the
blur, even in the doubt, there is glory!
She
is in glory today!"
