My Nana passed away on April 29,2012 She was 89 years old. I wrote this for her and read it at her service yesterday. I wanted to share it with you.
Nana was brilliant. She did so many things to help others. One
of her amazing gifts was teaching. She could teach in a way that kids and adults
could understand. She taught me. Which is saying something. For those of you
who don’t know me very well. I have a tendency to be a bit impatient, along
with being very distractible. Especially when it came to subjects, such as math. I hated math with a passion! My Nana, loved math as much as I hated it. But, bless her.
She took it upon herself to tutor me in math. Nana said “math is like a puzzle, you just
need to learn, how to fit the pieces together.” One summer, when I was probably
in Jr. High. She would come to my house and work with me, in math and in
history. I remember, she made a map of the different countries and put them on
poster board. Then she got stickers (she loved stickers) that were of kids dressed in clothing that represented the
country they came from. After we would study about a country we would put the
corresponding sticker on the corresponding country.
I always enjoyed this part of the lesson. It was when we came to the
math part, that I would start swinging my feet or want to go and get 18 cups of
water. But, Nana would rein me in. She had that “School teacher look” usually
that left me shaking in my socks. When that look came out I knew that my trips
to the kitchen were over and that we needed to get down to business. Nana was
patient with me, and Nana was kind to me, when I didn’t understand. While I may
not have understood it then, I understand it now. She wanted me to succeed. It
didn’t matter if I never loved math the way she did. She wanted me to know that
I was smart and with her help I could accomplish anything.
Nana, not only had a passion for
teaching math but she also had a passion for teaching music as well. When I was in my mid 20’s I wanted to take up
playing the piano, again. So, I asked
Nana if she would be up for teaching me. I would drive to Nana’s house once a
week. I would sit at her piano and she would go over all the scales and the
pieces she wanted me to work on. My favorite part of our lesson was when we
would play a duet. Nana loved to play duets. I think that was also her favorite part of our lesson. I
loved to watch her play. She had such a light touch on the keys that I totally
understood the phrase tickle the ivories. Her passion and excitement for music
was contagious. After my lessons, I was often inspired to play like Nana did. On more than one occasion I attended her mu
fi meetings. The one that I remember the most was when Nana and Shirley Humfeld
would play a fun and light hearted duet. I was in awe of how the two of them
could play on one piano and not bump into each other. Nana made it look so easy. For me she portrayed
a side of her talent of classical music that was whimsical and vivacious.
As kids Nana used to
drive us all over the place. From grocery shopping to taking us to piano
lessons. She would drive us down town for lunch, then back to her house for
sleep overs. When we were with Nana we were always well fed. Nana was a
marvelous cook. However Nana often made things in small quantities. For example
her choc chip cookies, (a personal favorite) were about the size of a silver
dollar. So you usually had to eat twice as many to equal an actual size cookie.
Nana also had “Little” things in her house. Like the worlds smallest ketchup
bottle, or teeny tiny Tupperware containers. When Nana would come to our house
for dinner she always brought Pepridge farms dinner rolls. These were rather
tiny rolls. Nana seemed to be drawn to
all things tiny in size. Which for us, was exceptionally handy, since we all were
tiny in stature. My sisters and I
started referring to things as being “nana size” We used to tease Nana about
her “Nana rolls” and her “Nana size” ice cream sandwhiches. She never seemed to
take offense, She would just laugh along with us.
Nana loved to send post
cards. It was always so fun to get my own piece of mail. Often times it was
hard to read her wirtitng because it too was “nana size” yet, I was still very
happy to have reicieved her post card. She continued to send them to me in all
stages of my life not just when I was living at home. She sent me some while I
was in college and eventually when I got married. When I started having
children, I remember she sent me a card in the mail telling me how excited she
was to meet the new baby. ( I still have it)
Life changes but to me Nana always seemed timeless. Nana
encouraged me always. She marveled in my children and often told me how smart
she knew they were. She loved talking to Aryanna. (My oldest). I think she was
drawn to her because she was very “Nana size.” I enjoyed being with her. Whether it be lunch
at Applebee’s or polishing her nails. When tragedy struck in Novemebr of 2009. I
can remember my Nana calling just to say Hi. She again helped me in ways that I
will never forget, and I am grateful.
To me, It doesn’t seem real. I know that my Nana, did live a
long and fruitful life. She may not have been recognized enough for all the
good that she did. She may not have changed the world, but she changed my
world. She changed the world for all of those who couldn’t read or write. For
all of those little lives that she touched when teaching music to elementary school
kids. She inspired me, she encouraged me, and she loved me the way
only a Nana can. Thank you Nana for all that you did for me. For all the unseen
things you did, and for supporting me always. I love you and feel truly blessed
and grateful to have been a part of your amazing life. We celebrate you.
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