Monday, May 4, 2009

Mamaw

My Mamaw Winnie passed away today. My papaw held one hand and my mom held the other as she took her last breath and her heart stopped beating. My aunts hugged each other and cried. I didn't. Couldn't. I just went into robot mode. Watching the monitors, praying she'd heal and that the doctors were wrong. I didn't go to see her in the hospital during the last few weeks. I had a feeling in my heart that she wasn't coming home and I didn't want to see her incoherent and possibly not know who I was. Today I went because I owed her a proper goodbye.

She was a spitfire of a woman. She too, lost a child and finally, finally can hold her lost baby in her arms tonight. She was big on family history and could name off relatives of years gone by from old photos. Up until the time she was placed in the hospital, she did everything on her own. She and Papaw were very independent.

She loved dolls of every kind and had an entire room in her basement dedicated to her collection. She collected geodes.. pieces of rock with beautiful crystals in the middle. She loved to sew and to quilt. She loved her dogs. There were many dogs along the way, but her favorite little guy was a terrier mix named Seymour Butts. Yes, she had a wonderful sense of humor. When I turned 18, she sat me down and let me watch the movie "Porkies". She thought it was one of the funniest movies ever.

I will never forget her. I love you, Mamaw.

2 comments:

Shylent said...

Wow, your Mamaw sounds like a wonderful person to have known ! Some of us are so lucky to have such special people in our lives. I hope you are able to share more cherished memories of her in future posts , I would *LOVE* to know more about her. Anyone who names their dog Seymour Butts is awesome in my book !!

LJR said...

I am sorry for your loss, I will keep your family in my thoughts and prayers.

She did sound like a very funny lady, and a wonderful person. I too would love to hear more about her!

Diagram of Tommy's Heart Defects

Diagram of Tommy's Heart Defects
Double Inlet Left Ventricle with Transpostion of the Great Arteries