Invincible Grandma?

My grandmother's memorial service was today. It was a beautiful service. I shared the following:

Emmabell Eley, or, as my cousins and I would call her, Grandma. Being somewhere in the middle, birth-order wise, I may not have as many memories as some of my older cousins, and may have a few more than those younger than I, however, due to our being scattered across the country, many of them who would like to be here today are unable, and I hope they will allow me some grace to represent them in sharing a few thoughts.

Over the past four decades I have made many a memory with Grandma and other family members. I have also been told tale after tale of various family escapades and adventures, quite a few that have brought more than a chuckle, and some, of course, that have brought tears. Today you'll hear many words that describe Grandma, and I'm sure each of have you have something coming to mind even as I speak.

When I was younger, much younger, I heard a story that was intended to explain the love that Jesus demonstrated by giving his life so that we might live. The story was of a mother hen. This hen as most hens do, kept her chicks protected under her wings as she covered her nest with her body. The difference in this story is that there was a fire in the barn, and the mother hen perished in the blaze, however, when, the farmer came in and moved her charred body to clean up, her chicks were alive underneath her.

Unconditional, sacrificial, love, for her children and grandchildren was a recurring theme throughout my Grandma's life. She always gave, always protected, never asking for anything in return. The difference between Grandma and the mother hen is that Grandma never died. From a grandchild's perspective, Grandma was “old” even in my earliest memories. When someone is old for 40 years and still has a mind that is sharp as a tack and the spunk to rival a teenager, you believe she is going to live forever. To me, and I'm sure many of my cousins, Grandma was invincible. It was hard to watch her during this last month, when she was no longer able to stand or sit up. I kept looking around the room wanting to take away the kryptonite that someone had snuck in. Still, Grandma had her spunk, right up to the very end. She celebrated in some of the hospice reunions, my cousin Matthew and I who had not seen each other for several years, as well as her four living children spending time together in one place.

Today, please celebrate Grandma's life with me, with us, my cousins and I, and learn from her as well. Show that sacrificial love to one another, its one of life's greatest investments. Have those reunions now, before you're united beside a hospice bed. Give each other a hug and kiss on the cheek, from Grandma.