The Legacy of Grandma Margie

The Legacy of Grandma Margie

There are a lot of people who can look back at one of their grandparents with great pride and joy, and for me it is my grandma Margie. I think I felt the closest to her out of all of my family. She was a true treasure, was always there when you needed her, and made sure you always had something to eat. My grandma was very nice to all those she met, she was very accepting of changes in our family, and never put anyone down. She lived her life the way that she was meant to, full of life, full of love, and full of respect for everyone around her. I remember growing up, how excited I would be to visit her, because she always made me feel so special. She had a way of making everyone around her feel special, feel like they belong, and she never favored one person over the other. My grandma was a strong lady, compelled to do good, to love with all of her heart, and help those out that she could. I feel so close to her even now as a single mother of three beautiful girls. She always did say that I had a fire in my eyes that meant that I would keep fighting for what's right no matter what. I cherish the talks we had still to this day and remember a lot of the advice that she gave me.

I will carry that advice with me as long as I live, and plan to share that advice with my daughters when the time comes. Sometimes I will miss her dearly, and wish that I had just one more hour with her, then all of a sudden I will feel a familiar sense around me and even smell her perfume she always wore. I think in those times she comes back to visit as a reminder that she is still there watching over me and my daughters. It makes me feel safe to know that she is still watching over us and is protecting us from above. Her passing definitely hit us all very hard as it wasn't long after she was diagnosed with stage-4 terminal cancer that she left this earth for good. She lived a long full life, full of happiness, full of laughter, full of love, and full of the enjoyment of being close to those she cared about most. She definitely passed on knowing that everyone loved her and would miss her dearly. But she also knew that her time was up here on earth, and that we as a family would not want to see her in any more pain.

My grandma Margie was a good Christian lady, who upheld everything she believed in, and never let anyone tell her different. She was strong in her beliefs, so strong she never did tell her doctor about the back pain she suffered for years, and she never said a word about the pain she was in. She just took her Ibuprofen with water, put a heating pad behind her, and calmly sat there and talked to any visitors who were there. She never let on just how much pain she was in, especially the last year of her life, and for that I truly admire her. She didn't want any of the family members worrying about her, making a fuss over her, and she didn't want to feel like a burden. It wasn't until the pain got so bad that she could not keep any food down anymore that my uncle took her to the doctor to see what was going on. My grandma refused to hear the news so she went and waited in the car while my uncle spoke to the doctor. I think she knew what was going on, she knew what the doctor had found in her x-rays, she knew that her time was short now. I think she already knew even before she went to the doctor what was going to happen. Luckily for us, she had already had things situated and sorted in the event of her death, she had life insurance, a living will, and even a burial outfit picked out just one month before her doctor's appointment. Again, she never said a word to anyone, she was a true woman of strength, caring nature, and compassion. I will always miss her and the time we shared. But I am thankful I got to spend so many years getting to know her and the woman she became.