Remembering Grannie

As most of you know, Luke's Grannie went home to be with Jesus on Thursday, December 15. Although we were not exactly prepared for how quickly it happened, we know that she was so ready to meet her Savior face to face and we are so happy that she was truly home for Christmas. There is so much that I could say about Grannie and all that she meant to Luke and all that she meant to me over the last 8 years that I have been her granddaughter as well. Yes, she let me start calling her Grannie long before Luke and I were ever married! She was so joyful, and giving, and full of life, and never ever passed up an opportunity to make someone feel loved. She was also such a fighter. Many thought that she wouldn't live after the tragic accident that claimed her husband's life 5 years ago and left her in the ICU and then a rehab center for months following, but fight she did. She was determined to walk down the aisle at our wedding just 9 months after that and she succeeded! And not only that, but she also was able to meet not only her first great-granddaughter, but also her second just a month ago. In fact, the last pictures that we have of Grannie are these of her spending time with Anna Kate and Caroline when we came to Greenwood for Thanksgiving. Have you ever seen a bigger smile?

Although it is always very difficult to lose a loved one, we truly had a wonderful service out in her little hometown of Claude, Texas. We remembered all of the different roles she played in so many people's lives, but mostly we remembered that the was a child of God and because of this she was able to hear the words, "Well done, my good and faithful servant." Luke officiated the service and I could not have been more proud of him. He reminded us that it is okay to grieve because sickness and death is not the way that things should be. He reminded us that one day God will create a new heaves and a new earth and wipe away ever tear from our eyes and once and for all do away with all sickness and death and crying and pain and we will be able to enjoy Him forever.

After the service we took some pictures at a few different places that meant so much to Grannie during her long and full life. Here is our little family in front of the Claude United Methodist Church where Grannie served faithfully for so many decades. She was a true example of loving and serving the body of Christ.

We also had to take a picture in front of Grannie's house. The house that she lived in from the time she was a baby until the day that she moved to South Carolina just a couple years ago. Can you imagine living in the same house your entire life? She grew up in that house, spent her married days in that house, raised her daughter in that house, offered hospitality to so many in that house, welcomed her grandchildren for many visits in that house, and lived there until the day came that she couldn't live on her own anymore. Amazing!

Finally, we took Anna Kate and Caroline out to see the Palo Duro canyon just a couple miles outside of Claude. What a beautiful example of God's creation that Grannie loved so much. If there are places on earth this incredible, it makes me all the more eager to see what the new heavens and new earth will look like one day!

There is so much more that could be said, but I will close by saying that I was blessed to have Grannie in my life, and I will always have stories for my children about the legacy that she left for them.