Memories of Mamaw

“If tears could build a stairway and memories a lane, I’d walk right up to heaven and bring you home again.” -Unknown

My great grandmother’s funeral was this past Saturday. I saw her quite a bit over the last four years while I was in college in Dallas, since she lived just a little over an hour away. I would have lunches with her, my grandparents, and my great aunt and uncle, or I would go visit her and my grandparents. One time, I even “babysat” her since my grandparents were out of town, and Mamaw didn’t like to stay alone overnight. Many memories were shared of Mamaw this past weekend, but here are a few of mine that didn’t get mentioned by anyone else.

1)      SOAP OPERAS!!! This was one of mine and Mamaw’s biggest bonding topics. I’ve watching soap operas for years and was probably her only relative who enjoyed them as much as she did. Mamaw watched them religiously!  She wasn’t ashamed of watching them, so I feel no guilt in bringing up the topic. People would come to visit her, and she would not turn off the television if one of her three soap operas were on. She watched Young and the Restless, Bold and the Beautiful, and Days of our Lives. I know a lot about soap operas, and the two latter ones are by far the most outrageous of the soap operas currently on air. It always made me smile when I thought about how Mamaw took joy in the silliest ones. She did, however, have excellent taste in which characters she liked and hated…we always agreed that we wanted to see Nick with his first love, Sharon, and not the witchy Phyllis on Young and the Restless.

2)      I hate to mention something else in regards to TV, but this has to be said. When my brother and I were little, Mamaw would send us countless videotapes that she had recorded (since she had cable and we did not), with hours and hours of the most wonderful television shows and movies. She must have spent so much time doing that, and I know she did that for some of her other great grandchildren as well. So many of my favorite childhood movies came from those tapes: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk (with Gene Kelly), The Chipmunk Adventure movie, Rumpelstiltskin, etc. This was perhaps one of the best gifts of my childhood. I don’t think I would be the same without them. Thank you, Mamaw!

3)      Speaking of gifts, this past Thanksgiving, Mamaw gave me a family heirloom; something very old that she knew I would appreciate: a petite casserole dish. It’s adorable! (if you can call a casserole dish “adorable.”) It’s about 6 inches by 10 inches, and it’s so old that it doesn’t have handles on it; apparently, they used to make casserole dishes without the handles. I believe she told me it belonged to her mother. I was incredibly touched when she gave it to me and still am.

4)      Mamaw professed to be old fashioned and anti women’s lib. But some of her love advice was anything but! I remember telling her several years ago about this guy who I desperately fancied, and she told me, “Just grab him and kiss him!”

5)      And speaking of Mamaw and romance, she told my cousin, Theresa, and me a year ago about this fascinating romance of hers. Apparently, she and this man had feelings for each other when they were young, but the timing wasn’t right. One of them was married, and when he/she was free, the other one was married. This happened many, many times throughout their lives. When she told us about the situation, she spoke of him so tenderly and with a hint of regret. Apparently, he even contacted her in the last few years, but she wouldn’t even agree to see him because she was married. That and apparently he wasn’t good looking anymore. Ha! It was just absolutely fascinating to hear her talk about him; it sounded just like a movie! One of my favorite quotes goes, “You’re supposed to be the leading lady in your own life, for heaven’s sake!” And that is something I really admired about Mamaw: she was most definitely a leading lady.

Rest in peace, Mamaw. You are much missed and much loved.