Tuesday, February 8, 2011
One of my earliest memories with Granny Polly was spending the night at the old white house. There were several beds in a big room in the upstairs which was nicknamed the "boar's nest." It would usually be Mom, Dad, me, Lena, Ray, Grandma and Grandpa. We would say our goodnights and granny would say, "Shan, sing us a song." So I would sing before we would go to sleep. Then on Sunday mornings Granny and I would catch the church bus to Kenton Baptist Church where she was a member for many many years. She was also my Sunday School teacher for several years. Most Sundays it would just be the two us, which was fine with me. If Granny couldn't find a way to church, she would walk. Nothing came between Granny and church!
She always made you feel important. When I was a little girl, she let me "roll out" the dumplings for her chicken dumplings. She fixed a big meal every Sunday after church. It always amazed me how she could manage to fix enough food for everyone...no matter how many people stopped by to visit.
We were also neighbors for a while. She told me she could hear me leaving for work in the mornings because she would already be out digging in her garden. She would also watch for my kitchen lights to go out before she would go to bed at night. I've heard her say her two favorite things in life were digging in her garden and reading the Bible.
She told me years ago one of her favorite songs was "How Beautiful Heaven Must Be." Here are a few words from that song. "We read of a place that's called Heaven. It's made for the pure and the free. These truths in God's Word He has given. How Beautiful Heaven must be. How beautiful Heaven must be. Sweet home of the happy and free. Fair haven of rest for the weary. How beautiful Heaven must be." How happy she must be now.
I have so many memories of my Grandma Polly that I will cherish always. There will NEVER be another Granny Polly. You never know just how blessed you are to have certain people in your life sometimes until they're gone. But I would venture to say, everyone who came in contact with my Grandmother knew EXACTLY how blessed they were to know such a strong, beautiful, caring, loving, Christian woman.
