My Grandma Johnson

I have been blessed in my life with amazing women. Each of them has taught me about the kind of woman, wife, and mother that I want to be. My Grandma Johnson is one of these women. She has been such an incredible roll model. She sets the standard for greatness. All my life she made me feel like I was her favorite. All of my cousins feel the same (...however, I really think that I AM the favorite) She saved herself from a bad situation, taking her and her 5 kids to safety..in a time that being a divorced single mom was almost unheard of. She met a Sailor, (who I think was the love of her life) and eloped to Vegas. They had two more kids and she blended the family together so well that the words "half brother" or "half sister" were never used!
My Grandma has the ability to play the piano without actually being able to read music. Some of my fondest memories are of her playing her "baby grand."
She also liked to dance. I remember watching her and my Grandpa dancing to Frank Sinatra songs. She and my mom could also tap dance. When Grandma got too old to tap, she used her fingers..She'd hum a tune and she'd use her two pointers to tap to the beat!
Okay..A little trivia about me... I HATED tuna fish sandwiches for most of my life..but when I went to Grandma's, she would make a tuna sandwich that not even a tuna could turn down.That was the thing about Grandma, everything she did was better . Everything she did made you feel good. Thankfully, she taught me how to make her tuna , and I have passed it down to my son. We call it a GGJ...and when I make it the memories of my Grandma come flooding back.
My Grandma is 91 this year, and as I type this her health is failing and sadly we are all making plans for her funeral. It's very hard to imagine my Grandma J in such a weak condition. She has been such a vibrant lady. I know when the time comes, she will be at peace, and there are a great many people on the other side excited to be with her again. She will be missed though. I am very grateful to have had time with her. Not many kids get to have a Grandma like mine!

There is a poem by Shel Silverstein that reminds me of my Grandma:

"Draw a crazy picture,
Write a nutty poem,
Sing a mumble-gumble song,
Whistle through your comb.
Do a loony-goony dance
'cross the kitchen floor'
Put something silly in the world
That ain't been there before."