As most of you know, my Grandma Dahl passed away this summer. It was so sad to see her in pain and in the hospital before she passed away on July 31, and although she was in the hospital for 2 weeks longer than she would've liked, those weeks have changed the way I look at life. It reminded me what the words 'family' and 'heritage' truly mean, and that my heritage is a rich one -- one to be proud of. I have a great legacy to follow and so many examples to look up to, and my GHHD was definitely at the top.
The Dahl clan is quite large, and as our family continues to grow in numbers our lives become more and more separated from one another. It is mainly due to the physical distance between us, but nowadays that distance isn't really so distant, if you know what I mean. What I'm getting at is we didn't really have much of an excuse not to stay connected with one another, and before my grandma's passing, I don't think we understood that we are to show we love to each other that we care, and not just assume they know.
While I was with my cousins and my aunts and my uncles almost every day for those 2 weeks, I could feel something deeper and stronger between us than I ever had before. And as creepy and as weird as it sounds, I could feel that we actually were from the same blood and bones, just like grandma would always tell me. It was something I hadn't really felt before. We were united because we were family, we are part of one another, despite our lack of communication or keeping in touch.
If anybody knows my Grandma Dahl at all, you'll know that she had a hard time throwing anything away. If an object had any sort of memory attached to it, she kept it. She was a hoarder of sorts and because of this, she had a TON of things to go through. Some of thee greatest treasures were found in her gigantic room, and my favourite had to be all of the old photos she had. I could've looked through them for hours on end -- and, in fact, I did! I would sneak up into her room by myself when nobody else was there. I saw photos of many of my ancestors who I didn't even know, and also many of my aunts and uncles and of course my gma and gpa. The love I had for my family grew even stronger. I was in awe at the plan of salvation and how it all worked, and so grateful as well! How lucky am I to know that we can be together as a family forever and that my grandma is going to be looking out for me?!
Now that my family is all doing their routines again, I'm finding it really easy to forget the things that I learned and forget how I felt or what things I wanted to work on. It's so easy to get caught up in your own little world (especially when yours is as dysfunctional as mine!) But I definitely can't forget how refreshing it was to be surrounded by people who just get it -- they get how our family is, what works for us and what doesn't. And I love how they just get me. They love me for who I am and I know they will be there to support me and be there whenever I needed them no matter what. I also felt closer to my dad, which felt nice. He actually ended up coming home from Afghanistan, but that's a post for different day.
So, like I did in my tribute to my mom, I want to say thanks. Thank you, Grandma, for all of your spunk and personality. You would light up the room wherever you went and could inspire even the most inspired minds with your wonderful words of wisdom. There isn't a lady on earth that knows more than you did about ev-er-y-thing. And when I say everything, I mean it -- whether it was the latest news in the world, in the church, or even in sports -- you knew it all! But my favourite thing about you was that you always knew exactly what was going on with every one of your children and all of your grandchildren and even great-grandchildren. (and as you know, there are a lot of us!)
Thank you for having us over once a week for 'Grandma Day' before you left on your 15-year-long mission. Those are memories I will cherish forever -- how you had us pull the rollers out of your hair, us kids swinging off your spiral staircase onto the mini trampoline, and how we raked your orange shag carpet just for fun, and also when we lost something in there. (It was sort of a black hole, you could say.) Your homemade grandma macaroni was the best, and of course we can't forget about your liver (or supposedly "chicken") soup either. You taught us how to not be lazy/spoiled (or whatever you want to call it) by never driving us back to school or picking us up, even on the coldest of days. If we ran 20 steps and walked 20 steps, we would be back to school in no time. And it worked!
Thank you for making me feel special on every birthday I ever had, and every other holiday marked on the calender, for that matter. You never missed one of them by sending your awesome Jacquie Lawson e-cards which I have come to love and cherish dearly. I'm so sorry that you had to remind me to open them up every now and again! But thanks for making me feel so loved. I never doubted it for one second. Your constant shower of positive reinforcement and compliments never ended, and you always thought the best of every one of your grandchildren. We knew you meant it when you told us how "beautifully brilliant" we were, and it would encourage us to become better because of it.
Thank you for rubbing off on me in more ways than anyone knows. Sometimes I am in awe at just how much I am truly like you. For starters, I can't be on time for something to save my life! Not to mention that I am always in search of something that is missing. Plus, I like to hang onto things because of the memories attached to them. Dare I say it, I'm becoming a hoarder. (please feel free to intervene at anytime). My regular vocab consists of phrases like "oh my word" "say it isn't so!" and "oh, the nerve!" and all of those definitely come from you! But I'm also like you because I like to test things out and figure them out on my own. I know that you did the same -- you questioned things and were constantly looking for answers until the very end. You didn't question because you were skeptical, but you questioned them to honestly seek out the truth, and I admire that about you. I'm also one stubborn lady at times, and will stomp my foot down on the floor just like you did. (although I can't forget about those Gregson genes, and so I may end up being even more stubborn than you. yikes...)
I'm so thankful that you had guardian angels constantly surrounding you. Driving with you brought some of the scariest moments into my life, and we definitely needed those angels every time we went somewhere! But that just shows how independent you are, and I know I get that from you 100%. I am also so thankful for the last time we went through the temple together. It was just you and I. I felt so privileged to be sitting next to someone who had such an appreciation for the temple and had so much knowledge. I was also so inspired and proud of you when you decided to walk up every flight of stairs that day, even though many people asked you if you wanted to use the elevator. Watching you struggle was so hard, and it brings me to tears every time I think of your determination, but I was so proud of my strong-willed grandma and it will be a memory forever pressed into my mind. I had no idea that 2 short months later you would be on to greater things.
Thank you for holding my hand in the hospital and telling me you loved me every time I said it to you. I saw you the day you passed away. I visited you with Laikyn, and I'll be honest, I almost left because you looked so much different than you had before. But I'm so glad I stayed. What I told you that day was very dear to my heart. I felt so awkward talking to you because ... I don't know. It just felt weird for some reason. But thank you for listening to me anyways.
Grandma,you have left a great legacy of love and service behind you. You are a such wonderful lady, and never thought of yourself. You were constantly looking for ways to help others, and I know that you are as busy as ever doing that now. Like I told my cousins already: You are going to be the best guardian angel ever!
I love you dearly. Happy birthday!
The Dahl clan is quite large, and as our family continues to grow in numbers our lives become more and more separated from one another. It is mainly due to the physical distance between us, but nowadays that distance isn't really so distant, if you know what I mean. What I'm getting at is we didn't really have much of an excuse not to stay connected with one another, and before my grandma's passing, I don't think we understood that we are to show we love to each other that we care, and not just assume they know.
While I was with my cousins and my aunts and my uncles almost every day for those 2 weeks, I could feel something deeper and stronger between us than I ever had before. And as creepy and as weird as it sounds, I could feel that we actually were from the same blood and bones, just like grandma would always tell me. It was something I hadn't really felt before. We were united because we were family, we are part of one another, despite our lack of communication or keeping in touch.
If anybody knows my Grandma Dahl at all, you'll know that she had a hard time throwing anything away. If an object had any sort of memory attached to it, she kept it. She was a hoarder of sorts and because of this, she had a TON of things to go through. Some of thee greatest treasures were found in her gigantic room, and my favourite had to be all of the old photos she had. I could've looked through them for hours on end -- and, in fact, I did! I would sneak up into her room by myself when nobody else was there. I saw photos of many of my ancestors who I didn't even know, and also many of my aunts and uncles and of course my gma and gpa. The love I had for my family grew even stronger. I was in awe at the plan of salvation and how it all worked, and so grateful as well! How lucky am I to know that we can be together as a family forever and that my grandma is going to be looking out for me?!
Now that my family is all doing their routines again, I'm finding it really easy to forget the things that I learned and forget how I felt or what things I wanted to work on. It's so easy to get caught up in your own little world (especially when yours is as dysfunctional as mine!) But I definitely can't forget how refreshing it was to be surrounded by people who just get it -- they get how our family is, what works for us and what doesn't. And I love how they just get me. They love me for who I am and I know they will be there to support me and be there whenever I needed them no matter what. I also felt closer to my dad, which felt nice. He actually ended up coming home from Afghanistan, but that's a post for different day.
So, like I did in my tribute to my mom, I want to say thanks. Thank you, Grandma, for all of your spunk and personality. You would light up the room wherever you went and could inspire even the most inspired minds with your wonderful words of wisdom. There isn't a lady on earth that knows more than you did about ev-er-y-thing. And when I say everything, I mean it -- whether it was the latest news in the world, in the church, or even in sports -- you knew it all! But my favourite thing about you was that you always knew exactly what was going on with every one of your children and all of your grandchildren and even great-grandchildren. (and as you know, there are a lot of us!)
Thank you for having us over once a week for 'Grandma Day' before you left on your 15-year-long mission. Those are memories I will cherish forever -- how you had us pull the rollers out of your hair, us kids swinging off your spiral staircase onto the mini trampoline, and how we raked your orange shag carpet just for fun, and also when we lost something in there. (It was sort of a black hole, you could say.) Your homemade grandma macaroni was the best, and of course we can't forget about your liver (or supposedly "chicken") soup either. You taught us how to not be lazy/spoiled (or whatever you want to call it) by never driving us back to school or picking us up, even on the coldest of days. If we ran 20 steps and walked 20 steps, we would be back to school in no time. And it worked!
Thank you for making me feel special on every birthday I ever had, and every other holiday marked on the calender, for that matter. You never missed one of them by sending your awesome Jacquie Lawson e-cards which I have come to love and cherish dearly. I'm so sorry that you had to remind me to open them up every now and again! But thanks for making me feel so loved. I never doubted it for one second. Your constant shower of positive reinforcement and compliments never ended, and you always thought the best of every one of your grandchildren. We knew you meant it when you told us how "beautifully brilliant" we were, and it would encourage us to become better because of it.
Thank you for rubbing off on me in more ways than anyone knows. Sometimes I am in awe at just how much I am truly like you. For starters, I can't be on time for something to save my life! Not to mention that I am always in search of something that is missing. Plus, I like to hang onto things because of the memories attached to them. Dare I say it, I'm becoming a hoarder. (please feel free to intervene at anytime). My regular vocab consists of phrases like "oh my word" "say it isn't so!" and "oh, the nerve!" and all of those definitely come from you! But I'm also like you because I like to test things out and figure them out on my own. I know that you did the same -- you questioned things and were constantly looking for answers until the very end. You didn't question because you were skeptical, but you questioned them to honestly seek out the truth, and I admire that about you. I'm also one stubborn lady at times, and will stomp my foot down on the floor just like you did. (although I can't forget about those Gregson genes, and so I may end up being even more stubborn than you. yikes...)
I'm so thankful that you had guardian angels constantly surrounding you. Driving with you brought some of the scariest moments into my life, and we definitely needed those angels every time we went somewhere! But that just shows how independent you are, and I know I get that from you 100%. I am also so thankful for the last time we went through the temple together. It was just you and I. I felt so privileged to be sitting next to someone who had such an appreciation for the temple and had so much knowledge. I was also so inspired and proud of you when you decided to walk up every flight of stairs that day, even though many people asked you if you wanted to use the elevator. Watching you struggle was so hard, and it brings me to tears every time I think of your determination, but I was so proud of my strong-willed grandma and it will be a memory forever pressed into my mind. I had no idea that 2 short months later you would be on to greater things.
Thank you for holding my hand in the hospital and telling me you loved me every time I said it to you. I saw you the day you passed away. I visited you with Laikyn, and I'll be honest, I almost left because you looked so much different than you had before. But I'm so glad I stayed. What I told you that day was very dear to my heart. I felt so awkward talking to you because ... I don't know. It just felt weird for some reason. But thank you for listening to me anyways.
Grandma,you have left a great legacy of love and service behind you. You are a such wonderful lady, and never thought of yourself. You were constantly looking for ways to help others, and I know that you are as busy as ever doing that now. Like I told my cousins already: You are going to be the best guardian angel ever!
I love you dearly. Happy birthday!
This was such a incredible tribute to Grams. Brought a few tears to my eyes while eating breakfast. You're able to say the things we love about grandma so eloquently. Love you!
ReplyDeletethanks krys! she was too amazing of a lady to not give a tribute to. Love you, ya little traveler!
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