When Ali was born, Grandma was always a source of kind words when I needed them and she taught me a very valuable lesson about the power of positive thinking and about the good in the world when along with my Grandfather they rallied their entire church to pray for Ali over and over again. Grandma never offered anything but words of support and I remember her telling me many times how proud she was of me. My grandma used to beam when she saw my daughters. She loved them for exactly who they were and I loved watching them interact with her.

I want to thank my grandma for tomatoes the size of basketballs, for beautiful flowers, for more oreos than anyone should ever eat and for slipping me all those twenty dollar bills over the years. I want to thank her for always laughing when we made fun of her height (“Little Granny Short Legs”), for welcoming me and my friends into her home many times and for picking me up at university when I was sick and nursing me back to health with a never ending stream of ginger ale and ice cream! I want her to know that Madi will never forget her goldfinches and that Ali will always carry her unconditional love and acceptance with her.

I believe that those that we love never really leave us. Now, we have some extra guidance from above!