Green like Gracie's Pears

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As I'm reading the book Storycatcher my mind begins to wander back to my childhood. Growing up my parents would take my sister and I to my grandmother's house (my mom's mother) to spend the night or the weekend so they could enjoy some alone time, usually their anniversary. My grandmother could sit for hours recounting the stories of her life. I loved to sit and listen to her tales of long ago although some were told over and over. Oh how I wish I would have documented these stories to pass on to the next generation, for most of them have slipped from my memory ages ago.

Grandmother Gracie left this world a good twelve years ago and so went her recollections. I do recall a story she shared from her adult life from the garden that she spent much of her time. It's a bit silly but I love it because she told it and because she shared this with me since she knew how terrified I am of snakes. 

She was tending to the garden and a grass snake keep following her throughout the plot. She told the snake that she had no intention to exterminate it since it was harmless but she didn't like the way it kept looking at her and following her. Needless to say, after hours of the watchful eye of the snake she finally had to remove it. For the record, I never condone harming God's creatures but it was just plain funny to me to picture this snake weaving along the garden with her as she worked. 

I have no idea why this one trivial story remained with me throughout the years yet the parables slipped {or should I say slithered! LOL.} away. But it does remain along with the coziness I felt being cocooned in her handmade quilts and the aroma of French toast drifting from her cast iron skillet in the morning. Oh, and you can't forget her fried chicken. No one has ever been able to craft the most perfect fried chicken like she could. Let's not forget the pear tree next to her house that she would always remind us not to eat too many or else we'd get a stomachache. And, yes, we would eat too many and end up with a stomachache. The wisdom of grandmothers will never steer you wrong. 

Unfortunately, the stories are gone but I'm left with my memories of a fine, hardworking, Christian woman that I have been blessed to share the same eye color with (not with my immediate family of blues and brown) which happened to be her middle name and my son's favorite color - Green.

Hugs,