About a month ago I lost one of the most important people in my life, a bestfriend, a role model, a teacher, my everything: my grandma.
Her death was very unexpected and threw all of us off guard – how was the person who held everything together, the one who called for every birthday, every holiday, every few days just to check in and chat, how, out of nowhere, was she just gone?
As much as I wish I had more time with her, I am beyond grateful for the 20 years I had with the most amazing woman who taught me countless lessons.
From her, I learned how to go through the process of voting, how to cook, and how to make friendship bracelets.
A big hobby of mine is to actually make friendship bracelets. I’ve been making them since I was probably six or seven years old, initially intrigued from watching my mother making them. Grandma dealt with the frustration of trying to teach a child how to knot and how to do so properly and prettily and kept every single one that I made for her (even the ones that maybe weren’t so pretty). But to her, it didn’t matter.
In exchange, I taught her about memes and prankcalls and all sorts of weird things she didn’t didn’t understand but pretended to for me.
Most importantly, she taught me about life, love, and loss.
Up until now, she was there for everything.
Going into her house for the first time after she passed I found all sorts of memories including a plate that I made for her when I was a year old with my hand prints painted on it. She had it hung up for years. Seeing it again brought a whirlwind of emotions.
Since I was born, Granny had always been my bestfriend. The one there to listen about my school day from preschool through college. The one there from my first game to my senior night for cheerleading, to me getting my first coaching job. The one there from my kindergarten graduation, to my highschool graduation.
She gave me 20 years of love and lessons. Everything I do now is for her.
She’ll be there as I’m coaching my team to states. As I’m yelling in the stands at the MSU vs. U of M football game. At my college graduation, she will be right next to me where I’ll be able to honestly say that I made her proud.
This is all for you now, Grandma. Rest in peace.