A Child of Mercy and Grace [someone who inspires me]

We remember her fondly as "that crazy old bird."

She was crazy and old, but definitely not a bird. I can't say that a bird has ever done very much to inspire me. She used to have a bird, though. His name was Ollie, and he smelled badly. But his existence has very little to do with the way she inspired me.

She was my great grandma. And to anyone who's ever looked at me in surprise when I say I met her, she was closer to me than nearly anyone else--more like a second mother to me than anything else. And two years ago today, she went to go see her Heavenly Father.

I have no sappy story to tell you about her. No sweet, heartmelting tales of a sugary old lady who baked cookies and smiled a lot and had an "I would never harm a fly" air about her. No, if a fly bugged my great grandma, she would immediately slaughter it. If she saw something about you that she didn't care for, she would voice it. Loudly. If she had a personal issue, soon enough, it would quickly become your personal issue as well. And if you were doing something that she didn't think was the correct way to do so, Lord help you, because she would insist she was right until you just obeyed her.

When my mom and I would take her shopping, her running joke was always "Don't buy me so much! I'm never going to use all that before I die." She was quite blunt. On the other hand, she wanted to make sure everything purchased was consumed. She was frugal and diligent, having lived on a small farm during the Depression, and ordered anyone she was around to eat their entire meals. And often, some of her own. This included the decorative garnish sitting on her plate.

But she inspired me. Her hardworking attitude, her "waste not, want not" mentality, her ability to see and create humor in a difficult situation [sometimes, a situation she herself created], her zest for living big and dreaming bigger, her stubborn cheerfulness, her brutal honesty, her love for people, and her eternal hope in God.

I remember sitting at her bedside when she was in a home after being hospitalized. She was tired, weak, and knew she was nearing the end of her life--nearing closer to her place in Heaven. And when I asked her if she needed anything, all she wanted was for me to read her her Bible and her morning devotion, because she refused to miss a day. She reminded me that even in our weakest, most physically and emotionally straining of moments, God is waiting with open arms to take us Home. He loves His faithful servants, and she was most definitely one of them.

I'll never forget that "crazy old bird."