Having a Moment

I am experiencing a real sense of accomplishment today. I just wound a bobbin on my grandmother's sewing machine. You have to understand, this is a huge accomplishment for me. In the 80's, when I was a secretary, I couldn't even load my own typewriter ribbon. So the fact that I could wind a bobbin on a 38 year old machine, makes me happy.

Today I sewed with this machine for the first time. I imagined my grandmother, Grace, sewing on this as a brand new machine. It must have been nice. Check out this keen 70's manual! I've even got the groovy sewing table in the picture. I loved my grandmother. We spent alot of time with her growing up. I am alot like her. I love birds and sewing and gardening and shoes! However, it was my paternal grandmother, Mabel, who loved the ugly shoes. And I love me some ugly shoes! Mabel worshipped God with some noise! She went to the Rock Church. So you know where I got the nose ring side of me!! I like knowing I have things in common with my grandmothers. But what I wish I knew is how we are alike on the inside. I wish they were alive so we could talk about God and heaven and our spiritual life.

All my life I have heard my dad say, "Grace was the sweetest woman I ever met." My mom got that part of her! But I got something. She must have loved nature like I do. I can tell that from the artwork she left behind. Grace died soon after I was married. At that time, I never imagined I would be a mom. I wish she knew my kids. I wish they knew her.

Mabel died when I was 13. She and I loved being together. But I didn't understand how we were spiritually connected. It wasn't til after we adopted PJ that my dad told me how Mabel loved China. He says she read everything Pearl Buck ever wrote about China. Buck is my favorite author! I guess my dad first told me all this when I started collecting hardback Pearl Buck novels. Dad also told me that Mabel wanted him to take her to China one day. My dad traveled to China 3 times a year for 15 years. But he started his work there five years after her death. Now my family is involved there through missions. And because of adoption, we are an American/Chinese family. She would really dig that.

Knowing the influence they have had on me makes me think about being a grandmother one day. I will talk about my life and my experiences to my grandkids, because understanding one's self through the past is important.