My Grandparents

In the last several days, I've read two posts that got me thinking about my grandmothers (you can check the posts at KS Milkmaid & Down Shifting Path). Their posts were about how many of our elderly don't pass on wisdom or are put into homes with little "intergenerational" contact. I was blessed with two wonderful grandmothers that I had much contact with as a child and young woman. In fact, my grandmothers are more responsible for the woman I am today than probably any other person on the planet. They shaped my character so greatly with their simple wisdom. They were simply the two wisest women I've ever known.

My paternal grandmother (Kathie) lived with my family from the time I was about 7. My grandfather had died the previous year. She taught me how to sew and quilt and while I don't hand quilt like she did, her lessons are always with me, her quilts are too. I have several quilts that she made and treasure them all. She taught me how to take apart old clothes and fashion them into functional quilts, they may not be fancy but they are warm. She taught me how to make cloth napkins and while they are a very simple sewing project, I'm so glad that I know how to make and use these wonderful treasures. She is also responsible for my love of baking, it was a passion she instilled in me from a very young age. She taught me how to knead and bake bread, how to make and decorate cookies. She always welcomed me in the kitchen with her and never seemed to mind any messes I created. She taught me to wear aprons and pull my hair back when in the kitchen, too. She was a gardener as well and taught me much about flowers (my love of vegetable gardening came from my dad which came from his dad). She also taught me the value of "everything has a place and everything in its place."

My maternal grandmother (Edith) lived not far from us and we visited generally about once a week, if not more. As a child I spent many nights visiting with her and my grandfather, sleeping over, etc. She taught me that when you let dishes air dry in the rack, that God was doing the drying. I remember clearly asking one day if she wanted me to dry the dishes and her reply was "We'll let God dry." To this day, I let God dry most of the time. I love sharing that little tidbit with other people. She is responsible for my love of cooking along my ethnic background or at least the blurred ethnic background of growing up near Pittsburgh. She taught me how to make holuski, stuffed cabbage, homemade tomato sauce, and much more. More than anyone else, she taught me that being yourself was the only way to be.

Both my grandmothers instilled in me the love of reading. They both read to me as a young child and bought me more books than any other person probably will. Both my grandmothers have passed on and I miss them dearly to this day.

My maternal grandfather (Mike) is still alive and while I don't see him often being that we live on opposite sides of the country. We do actively write old-fashioned hand written letters to each other. He taught me all kinds of things too, like swearing is something only done in the cellar, lol. He also taught me the love of just getting things done, working with my hands and figuring stuff out. He fostered a love and respect of animals and nature in me that no one else possibly could have done. He was an avid fisherman and hunter but did so in responsible manners and taught me that we should only kill for what we eat not for trophy purposes.

My paternal grandfather (Nick) died when I was about 6, so sadly I have very few memories of him. I remember vaguely hanging out with him and his retired pals at a local burger joint for lunch. I have no doubt that I've inherited his love of getting involved and creating change. He immigrated to this country from Yugoslavia at the age of 8. He spoke fluent Serbian when he was angry, lol, and was very active in local politics. He too was an avid gardener and passed that knowledge onto my dad who passed it on to me. I know that he only had an 8th grade education but I also know he was a very wise man in the ways that really matter.

As a little side note, I was named after my paternal grandparents. Their names were Kathie & Nick - I am Kathie Nicole...