An example to live by- by Janell, CAREGiver & Guest blogger

My Grandmother was a small woman. Not much over 5 feet tall and certainly not 100 pounds. She had 11 children between 1917 and 1936. Like many women of her time, she was hard working, devout and tireless. She felt she was blessed to have each of those eleven children. Although, I have heard some of those children say as adults that it was such a hard and difficult life, "Why did she have all those children?"

She liked to write and in her later years, she often wrote bits and columns for the local newspaper, as well as obituaries, including my mother's.

She lived a hard life raising so many children with so few resources. She was widowed at an early age and I cannot imagine I would have survived for even a few days of her world. And yet, she was always very positive, never complaining. She was happiest when there were children around and as one of her many, many grandchildren; I cannot remember her once having a harsh word or strict directive. I would like to think that it was because we simply did not misbehave. Laughingly, I know that could not have been true. Her house was always filled with children running through the house, up the stairs. There was always boxes of old clothes to go through to play dress up, books to pull off the shelves to look through, beds to jump on. There were no boundaries with her in her house. There was nothing that she was afraid that little hands would mess up.

When we stayed at her house, she would often sleep with me and at least one if not two of my cousins. I know that it was not a large bed. It was a small full-size fluffy lumpy bed. And although, we three little girls may have not been more than 4-5 years old, we must have flipped and flopped all over her all through the night. She was happy in the middle of us though and would tell stories or check to make sure we had learned a bible verse that we should know. She giggled and laughed with us at our little girl jokes and we would always fall asleep quite happy and contented.

Sometimes in tough times, I wonder how she found the strength and the good nature to bear the tough times she saw in her life. I am in awe of her strength and know that she lived a life that she did not regret.

What do you remember most about your Grandparent?