A Thankful Heart

This is the woman who raised me and I will thank God for her always. She exited this earth July 1st at 98 years old and now waits for me in heaven.

When my parents were out in the evenings this precious woman would tuck me into bed and then sit outside my bedroom on the steps until I'd fall asleep. When I was older she joked that I only wanted my orange juice served in a little silver cup.   She taught me how to polish silver!

One of my favorite activities was walking with her to our neighborhood fire station to buy penny candy. She washed all my clothes and put them away in my room, changed my bed once a week and took me on her afternoon break slipping in the back kitchen door of a neighbor's home where a friend of her's was a housekeeper a few days a week.

Gladys had a bedroom, bath and small hallway with a large closet on the lower level of our home.  Her days off were Thursdays and Sundays. Thursdays she stayed in a room in the city that she rented and Sundays she boarded a bus to her hometown about an hour away where she headed straight to her church.

At times I would ride the bus downtown with her for a special outing.  I sat in the back of the bus with her. She even took me to a couple of her family reunions. She had my breakfast ready every morning, helped me pack my lunch and would set a formal table and served us dinner every evening.  I loved the nights I got to eat in the kitchen with her, if my parents were out. 

In the summers when we headed to the lake she came along and had her own private quarters there as well.  I think Smith Mt Lake was one of her favorite spots, as she loved to fish! In the afternoons I'd sit outside and snap beans or shuck corn with her.  I am glad she lived to see me marry and later live here at the lake full time.

After my father retired, my parents began to winter in Miami, FL and she went with them having her own quarters there as well. She developed friendships in Miami and had a friend who went to the dog races with her.  When I would visit my parents with our children, she would put the youngest in our double stroller and take them all for morning and afternoon strolls along the waterway. Our children loved her as well.

My husband has sweet Gladys memories of his own, but he tells this story of the first time he called to ask me out.  He says he wasn't sure the date was worth the interrogation.  "Who are you? Who are your parents? Why do you want to speak to her?"

Years later, after Gladys had retired, my husband and I were visiting she and her mother, at her home in Covington, VA. Before we left he offered to pray for these two women.  We circled up and as he prayed, there were hearty "Amens!" coming from their mouths. This spurred him to pray on even more fervently, which brought forth more "Amens!"  He says, he'd like to think when we left that "Little Mama" said to Gladys. "That boy can pray!"

Dementia set in many years ago and Gladys was moved to a nursing home where she could get the care she needed.  My visits would begin with "Who are you?"  Then they would quickly flash to early years. She had no recollection that my parents, brother and nephew had died. I'd accompany her to a bingo game or hymn sing, but by the time we'd get to the group setting again it would be, "Who are you?" and the same questions about the rest of the family.  She could remember every verse of those hymns though!

One benefit of cell phones is being able to snap photos of everyday activities. I wish I had a photo of all the times she held my hand.

Titus 3:2 says this about how we should live...speak evil of no one, avoid quarreling,  be gentle, and show perfect courtesy toward all people.

That is the way Gladys lived in a time in our nation's history where black people were very mistreated. My heart is full of thankfulness for the love and care she gave to me.

The Song

Give thanks “Don Moen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blbslHDgceY

Female vocalist

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk_7wUR2Wdg