Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do.
Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children.
~Alex Haley

March 7th is always a day filled with emotion--it is my great-grandmother's birthday. Georgia McClaflin (or Grandma JoJo as I called her) was a remarkable woman. If she was still living she would be 106 years young today. Sadly, when I was 7 she passed away. In those 7 years of my life, however, she made an everlasting impact. I was extremely lucky--I spent time with her at least once a week and, often, I saw her more than once a week. Thursdays my grandma (her daughter-in-law) would take her grocery shopping and they would spend the day together. Before I started school, I went with them almost every Thursday and when I did start school, I joined them after school. Grandma JoJo holds some of my fondest childhood memories--I was so blessed to have so much time with her when she was alive. She was and, still is, a huge influence in my life. She taught me how to read, how to tie my shoes, and always encouraged my love for reading and school (she was a former teacher.) She endured endless hours of me singing her camp songs and reading her Berenstein Bear books, but I think she must have liked it because she never once asked me to be quiet! (Smile) Even though she has been gone for quite some time, I still think of her so often. I wonder what she would think about me graduating college this year. Would she be proud of what I have done and who I have become? What advice would she have to give me? She absolutely loved taking pictures, she loved flowers, and she loved the sky--I often wonder if I got my love for all of those things from Grandma JoJo. Maybe I 'inherited' some of her passions--I can only hope. She was also a beautiful seamstress and quilter. When I was working on my first quilt last year I found myself wishing she were there to teach me, to guide me and when it was finished I wondered what she would have thought of it. It was actually a very sentimental moment for me. She had made so many quilts in her life, I felt like part of her was coming through me and my love for sewing. Goodness knows she must have been watching out for me since it turned out so well on the first try. (Smile)

I fondly remember Sunday afternoons, sitting on her lap in her rocking chair and reading her the newspaper articles she had saved from the past week. Her eyesight had begun to fail and it was hard for her to read the print of the paper, so she would cut out the articles she wanted to read and on Sundays when we would visit her house, I would climb up on her lap and read them to her. I do not think I have ever been so proud in my life as when I finally learned how to read well enough to read to the one who had taught me. She always made me feel so special--I think she made everyone of her grandchildren feel special even though there were so many of us.

It's been 15 years since we lost Grandma and hardly a day goes by that I don't think of her. Over the years the sound of her voice has faded, the comforting scent of her kitchen comes and goes, but her love and memories have remained steadfast in my heart. She also left behind many who keep her spirit & words alive. Her 9 children have had their families and, remarkably, we are all very close. We are a blessed family. I cannot help but think the closeness we all share stems from the matriarch, Grandma JoJo. She taught all of us how to love one another with her unconditional love, support, and faith. She believed in family ties and that has carried through to her children and to each generation after.

Today, I am happy for all of the memories I was able to share with her. There are not many kids my age that knew their great-grandmothers, let alone spent time every week with them. Today also brings a sense of sadness. I miss her everyday and long to sit at the airport and sing her silly songs and watch her eyes light up with the jets begin to roar. I am grateful for her presence in my life then & now. I am 22 but I still love to go to my Grandparent's house and snuggle under one of the many quilts and blankets she has made for us--it brings back happy memories of me of snuggling on her lap in that ol' rocking chair. I pray everyday that I may be a little more like her--a woman of strength and humor, who respected nature and all that it held, and who knew how to love unconditionally. That is the way she will forever be etched in my heart. Happy 106th Birthday Grandma JoJo!

**Picture: Me & Grandma JoJo on our last Christmas Eve together. She passed away 8 months later. Our immediate family was blessed, we had Grandma EVERY Christmas Eve and I am so grateful! I cannot help but notice the pure joy in my smile in this picture. That is the joy I have, even today, every time I think of her.