Friday, July 26, 2013
Betty O Grieve not, nor speak of me with tears, but laugh And talk of me as if I were beside you. I loved You so€”€˜twas heaven here with you. ------------------------------------------------------- Isla Paschal Richardson------------------------------------------------- Gram (Betty Disselkamp Owens), Mom (Betty Rohrscheib), and I (Barbara Loveless) have had quite a journey the last few years together. Gram was a very colorful person who has lived her life ... the good and the bad. She had some regrets and she had some blessings. Every experience made her the woman she was. I have a few stories ....................... First ... I recall very vividly a lunch she and I had ... the day was beautiful and Gram was in the mood for ribs (she wore as much as she ate). I looked up at her and there were tears flowing down her face. I asked her why she was sad. She said €¦ €œYou know €¦ life. I€™ve made a few mistakes €¦ I try not to think about them, but sometime I do.€ ..................... Second €¦ A few years ago, I took Gram on a riverboat lunch cruise down the river. The day was gorgeous and the temperature was perfect. There was music (fro her generation) on the loud speaker and then a local historian narrated the history of Chattanooga. She kept saying €œWhat a perfect day.€ It was for me as well. .................. Recently €¦ Gram is lying in the hospital bed and her gown fell down a little. I jokingly said €¦ €œCover yourself up, floozy.€ Her response (without missing a beat) in a weak, small voice, €¦ €œI€™m a low-down rotten floozy.€ Her humor stayed with her to the end. ......................... A few hours later €¦ she opened her eyes, smiled and looked at someone I could not see and said happily €œHi mamma.€ I asked if her mom was there and she looked at me like I was dumb and said €œwell, yeah.€ I asked if her dad was there too €¦ once again €¦ she looks at me with an incredulous tone and said €œof course he is.€ She did not remember this later. I like to think my granny and gramps were waiting to help her make the transition. Finally €¦ everyone had seen Gram except for Jordan. She arrived shortly after 10:30 pm. She kissed Gram, told her she loved her. I had Grams hand and was petting her head, Trish had her other hand ... she took 2 more breaths and then was gone. It was if she was waiting for the final farewell.
