Our Courageous Grandmother, Lottie Tabor Wagner
Having recently found the reel-to-reel tape of my grandmother Wagner's poem and the good picture of her and our PawPaw at their fiftieth anniversary celebration back in the '50s has caused me to want to remember more about her. For as long as I knew her, she did not have an easy walk. I do not know if she was troubled by arthritis, but I suspect she was. She always wanted to sit down and rest in between jobs around the house. I think a lot about her in that way, since I too am bothered by arthritis.
My grandmother was always kind to me but also a bit outspoken particularly in respect to cooking and generally running the household. She was never a shrinking violet, although I do remember her deferring to our grandfather who she always called by his nickname 'Boss'.
She was a wonderful cook. How I would love to walk into her house again to inhale the aroma of her fried chicken, creamed corn, gravy, and hot yeast rolls!
One thing she did for me that I did not fully appreciate at the time was writing to me while I was in college. Now, at this particular time she had fallen and broken her right wrist. She taught herself to write with her left hand after the fall, and my letters came from her left hand!
Life was not without its pain for our grandmother. Her oldest son Earl died of complications from typhoid when he was 16. And then I believe she must have worried a lot about my dad, her second son, who developed mental challenges in his forties due to a condition known as fronto temperal dementia. I do not remember her ever acknowledging that he was ill. Her approach was to move ahead and not to give up.
She was not the type to learn to drive and I do not remember her ever handling much money. In fact the infrequent times she went to town to shop, she limited her steps to one department store. When a purchase was made, her parting comment was "Boss will pay for it," and he did. If he dropped her off, he would return later in the afternoon to cover her purchases. Back then people did not make use of credit cards as they do now.
One habit she maintained for a lifetime - daily Bible reading and prayer. Her life may have been simple by our standards, but she held fast to those things which were important to her.
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How wonderful that you have captured your feelings about your courageous grandmother. The habits that she had and your chronicling of them are so much like many of our grandmothers. Thank you for sharing!
I have very few memories of my grandparents. On my father's side for all I know he was born in a petrie dish. On my mother's side,,,,grandma was a strict disciplinarian and lightening quick with a willow branch,,,looking back I am sure I deserved each and every stroke. AFter my grandfather died of a heart attack, she refused to eat and followed him just a couple of months later.
Hmmm...liked sitting down between jobs? Sounds just a little bit tooooo familiar, Pat Good story!
Pat, the remarkable this about this story is the first sentence. The fact that you recently came across an old reel to reel tape of your grandmother is extraordinary. What an incredible treasure!!
I love the way your story brings back memories for me of my own grandparents. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Like Susan Darbro, the "sitting down between jobs" is awfully familiar to me, too! The mind's willing but the body isn't! Enjoyed this read!
