This morning my Grandmother passed away. I don’t have much detail at this point, but if the last two weeks are any indication, she finally fell victim to a long and painful bout with Alzheimer’s. A nasty, unrelenting disease.
What could I ever hope to say about such an inspirational figure in my life? Except, of course, I love you so very much and you will be sorely missed. Plus I’d be remiss not to highlight something I’ve already said;
“I am the person I am because of the people they are. Growing up I’ve witnessed my Grandparents having to face peoples often misguided expectations. And although they never showed one bit of frustration towards peoples unawareness they had every right to be irritated. Ignorance of peoples feelings is purely a reason for treating people indifferently. It’s NOT an excuse…”
Or in other words, not only was my Grandmother an important half of an unstoppable team of personal motivation, she was so much more. She was an image of an individual who had lived with difficulties most, all but 7 years, of her 84 year stint on this planet. I can’t help but feel great sorrow for all she represented and, much more pressing is, what we’ve lost…
And still, the ever so relevant realization I’ve “stumbled” upon since my accident is, how could I, an individual, facing a life full of challenges, not strive to model my entire existence after such an individual? Again;
“My life is that much more manageable having witnessed how to live differently with so much self-respect and dignity. I just hope I can live my life, even half as successfully as they have.”
The inability to hear, in her case, doesn’t make anyone with the ability to do what she couldn’t one bit better. I’ll be forever humbled and I’ll always remember what she so modestly shared. Life’s struggles make living life much more satisfying than most people could ever hope to realize. Granted the lows can feel pretty low, sometimes, but the highs are, indeed, all that much higher. Trust me.
I will always remember her, for rather obvious reasons of course, but, ever more importantly, for the person she had chosen to live her life as.
Thank you so very much…
Time has come to say goodbye…
Today the world has one less hero…