Marion

Days like today,
when rain slaps the pavement
and the sun is nowhere to be found
are the days I think of you;
the days I wonder who you were.

Everyone who had the privilege
of knowing you in your lifetime
all swear
that you were the nicest person they'd ever met.

You made the best chocolate chip cookies,
gave the warmest hugs,
had the best lap for sitting,
and found the best gifts.
You almost sound too good to have been real.

I look just like you.
At least, that's what Dad says.
And looking at pictures of you
when you were my age...
it's like looking at a black and white reflection.

Mom gave me my eye color,
but they look exactly like yours.
My smile is a twin to yours.
They even say I laugh the same
as you did.

We share the same birthday.
February 27th - though many years separate us.
You were gone by the time I was born.
And Mom always jokes
that I was your parting gift.

I wish you could've stuck around
just long enough for me to meet you.
I'm your last grandchild
and the only one that has
no memory of you.
None at all.
I missed you by three years.

In every picture of you,
there's a twinkle in your eye;
a dimple in your cheek.
You're always smiling.
Even during the times
you just wanted to scream.

You nursed Grandpa for the last half of your marriage.
Through Hodgkin's disease.
His doctors gave him six months to live.
He died twenty-two years later.
With your help,
he made medical history.

You lived through the Great Depression.
through World War II.
Through so many horrible world catastrophes.
And, somehow,
you managed to keep your sanity.

You bore eleven children.
And instead of weeping for the three you lost,
you relished the eight who lived.
And raised them to be outstanding people.
Most of them, anyway.

I wish I could have met you.
But I know that I couldn't, and
Maybe there was a reason for that.
But even though we never met,
I must say, Grandma...
I think you and I are a lot alike.

Copyright 2009 S. Sieglaff