Lesson 8

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 421.

My grandmother's house has a very special place in my heart. I lived with my grandmother for many years when I was little. Her house always seemed to have something about it that set it apart from all the rest. As you walk into the front door of her house you notice a long, slender stairway that led up into the main hallway of the house. The strong smell of cigarette smoke is quite evident when you reach this point. Yes, my grandmother did smoke.
My grandmother's house was always full of laughter and many cheers. Our family used to call it Grand Central Station. There was always someone over her house visiting whether it be family or friends. My grandmother's doors were always open to everyone no matter what. When my grandmother had company she would tell us very seriously to act nicely in front of them or she would be very upset at us.
My grandmother always sat in the kitchen of her house. This is where she would drink her hot black coffee with no sugar and smoke her Virginia Slim cigarettes. She would sometimes sit in her kitchen for hours upon end and watch the ducks and the geese swimming by on the river and if it were warm enough outside she would crumble up some bread and feed it a little at a time to them.
In the summer time my grandmother and whoever happened to be at the house would sit out on the sundeck for hours and talk about anything and everything imaginable; she was known as the neighborhood gossip queen. The sundeck was a place for everyone to sit and relax in the warm sunny breeze. My grandmother was a very spontaneous person, she did what she wanted to at the drop of a hat and nobody ever stopped her. She was always very active in many things like Veterans Auxiliary, making crafts, cooking, cleaning, etc., but always had time for the ones she loved.
Living at my grandmother's house was indeed a lot of fun because she was so easy going with me. She allowed me to do all the things that I wanted to do and dreamed about. She was always willing to lend me a hand in anything that I needed. She was a highly giving person to everyone around her and she never asked for anything in return. She always had an ear to ear smile that would brighten up anyone's day if it wasn't going to well.
My grandmother had a very soft-hearted voice that I remember sung us to sleep when we were little. She would wait with us until we fell deep asleep and in the morning she would wake us with the smell of hot freshly cooked breakfast on the table. Even as we got older she always tried to baby us when we were around her. My grandmother was the kind, gentle, loving, caring grandmother every child dreams about having.
My grandmother passed away two years ago and it has been a very rough two years trying to cope with such a big loss. After she died I moved out of her house because I was so overwhelmed by the thoughts of her not being there. It was almost like her kindred spirit still moved about inside the house. She always said that when she died she would always be around to watch over us and to take care of us and I think that is exactly what happened.
I find it very difficult to go to my grandmother's house now that she has passed, but from time to time I will stop by. Even today, when I walk into the house I can still smell the Virginia Slim cigarettes she smoked and sometimes I swear I can hear her talking. When I walk into her kitchen I expect to see her sitting at the table drinking her coffee and smoking, but she is never there.
My grandmother was a very big influence on my life. She always instilled the best and finest qualities in me and always insisted that I be the best that I can be. She had a special knack for everything she did. She was always full of joy and tried to spread her happiness to everyone around her and I think that is what I miss most of all now that she is gone.