Oh, this is so special, beautiful, Del! Sandy ----- Original Message ----- From: delma bliss <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <recipesAndMore@googlegroups.com> Sent: Friday, August 31, 2007 12:03 PM Subject: [RecipesAndMore] A Shmily For You
> > > There was no end to the places "shmily" would pop up. Little notes with > "shmily" scribbled hurriedly were found on dashboards and car seats, or > taped to steering wheels. The notes were stuffed inside shoes and left > under > pillows. > "Shmily" was written in the dust upon the mantel and traced in the ashes > of > the fireplace. This mysterious word was as much a part of my > grandparents' > house as the furniture. > > It took me a long time before I was able to fully appreciate my > grandparents' game. Skepticism has kept me from believing in true > love-one > that is pure and enduring. However, I never doubted my grandparents' > relationship. They > had love down pat. It was more than their flirtatious little games; it > was > a > way of life. Their relationship was based on a devotion and passionate > affection which not everyone is lucky to experience. > > Grandma and Grandpa held hands every chance they could. They stole kisses > as > they bumped into each other in their tiny kitchen. They finished each > other's sentences and shared the daily crossword puzzle and word jumble. > My > grandma > whispered to me about how cute my grandpa was, how handsome and old he > had > grown to be. She claimed that she really knew "how to pick 'em." Before > every meal they bowed their heads and gave thanks, marveling at their > blessings: a wonderful family, good fortune, and each other. > > But there was a dark cloud in my grandparents' life: my grandmother had > breast cancer. The disease had first appeared ten years earlier. As > always, > Grandpa was with her every step of the way. He comforted her in their > yellow > room, > painted that way so that she could always be surrounded by sunshine, even > when she was too sick to go outside. > > Now the cancer was again attacking her body. With the help of a cane and > my > grandfather's steady hand, they went to church every morning. But my > grandmother grew steadily weaker until, finally, she could not leave the > house anymore. > For a while, Grandpa would go to church alone, praying to God to watch > over > his wife. Then one day, what we all dreaded finally happened. Grandma was > gone. > > "Shmily." It was scrawled in yellow on the pink ribbons of my > grandmother's > funeral bouquet. As the crowd thinned and the last mourners turned to > leave, > my aunts, uncles, cousins and other family members came forward and > gathered > around Grandma one last time. Grandpa stepped up to my grandmother's > casket > and, taking a shaky breath, he began to sing to her. Through his tears > and > grief, the song came, a deep and throaty lullaby. > > Shaking with my own sorrow, I will never forget that moment. For I knew > that, although I couldn't begin to fathom the depth of their love, I had > been privileged to witness its unmatched beauty. > > S-h-m-i-l-y: See How Much I Love You. > > Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for letting me see. > > "When God measures a man, he puts the tape around the heart!" > > Delma > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Access the Recipes And More list archives at: http://www.mail-archive.com/recipesandmore%40googlegroups.com/ Visit the group home page at: http://groups.google.com/group/RecipesAndMore -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
