My Grandmothers

I was very close to both of my grandmothers growing up.  I would often spend the night in their homes and we would have special time together. There was a very strong bond with my father's mother Eva. She had three sons and my father was the oldest.  I was her first grandchild and I was a girl. She had always wanted a girl and she lavished me with love and affection.  She especially loved to brush my hair and we would sit on the couch in her living room when she did that.  From a very young age, I noticed a picture hung above her couch and I fell in love with it.  She told me that the picture was of a woman named Nell Gwyn. 

My grandmother had a special connection with Nell Gwyn.  She believed that she was Nell Gwyn in another life time.  I asked her what that meant and she told me that she believed we live more than one life.  I remember I was fascinated with the idea and tried to wrap my mind around it.  As a young girl, I was so involved in my present reality that it was hard to understand the concept of a "soul"  being able to inhabit more than one body.  Nonetheless, my grandmother has a big influence on my spiritual beliefs.  

Nell Gwyn was a mistress to King Charles II of England in the mid 1600's. In 1660, when Charles took the throne in England, Nell was hired to work at the theater.  She was 13 years old.   Nell's mother, Madam Gwyn, was a prostitute and a friend of hers hired Nell to sell oranges   She was called an "orange-girl"and she would sell oranges to the people in the theater for sixpence each.  She would also take notes from the royalty who were in the audience to the actresses back stage.  At the age of fourteen, she became an actress and was quite popular.  She became the mistress to Charles II at nineteen. 

Grandma Eve told me that she bought the portrait in New York at an art gallery.  During World War II, many works of art were shipped to the United States to save them from being destroyed by the Nazis.  I inherited the portrait from my grandmother when she moved to the nursing home.  My grandmother believed it was an original.  I have never gotten it appraised, so I don't know for sure.  

I love it because it is a beautiful work of art, but mostly because it reminds me of my grandmother. She has passed away many years ago and this portrait brings her spirit into my home.  I know she is watching over me.

My grandmother was a beautiful young woman and she grew up very poor in rural Illinois.  My grandfather, Louis, was a traveling salesman and one day he went into a general store and my grandmother was working at the counter. They fell in love instantly.  After they got married and she moved to St. Louis, she took in various relatives who did not have money or a place to live.  She believed very strongly in service and giving to others.  She instilled that in me as well.  She always taught me that  money is not as important as giving to others.  She believed that was our main reason for being here on this earth.  She was a wonderful mentor for me.  Even though she grew up during a time when women were supposed to be subservient and be seen and not heard, she had a tremendous inner strength that shone through.  

When my daughter Sarah was born, I wanted to name her Eve.  It is a Jewish tradition to name the newborn child after a relative who has passed away.  But we already had a son named Adam and both my husband MIchael and I did not want our children teased about being named Adam and Eve.  Regardless, I believe she is watching over both of my children.  Grandma Eve will always live on in my heart.

My mother's mother is named Edith and she was a great entrepreneur.  She ran a printing company and was very successful.  She was quite a talented business woman as well as the family matriarch.  She had three daughters and my mother was the youngest.  When I stayed at her house, we would hang out in her bedroom and talk the night away.  She loved to put my hair in rags and make long curls.  One of our favorite things to do together was watch the Miss America pageants.  We had a wonderful time deciding on our favorites and rooting for them.  

When she retired, she wanted to do something with her time and so at the age of 75 she started painting.  She became quite a prolific painter and was talented as well.  I was always drawn to her first painting she did of an Indian woman.  She copied it from a picture and to me Edith's spirit is in that picture.  I remember after her funeral going back to her house with several family members.  I sat on her bed and could still feel her spirit there.  I spent some time closing my eyes and connecting with her. The only thing I requested of hers was the painting.  It is hanging in my house today.

 

What is so amazing to me is the detail.  Where did she learn to paint like that?  How could she do so well for her first painting?  Several years ago I was in an art class and we were looking through old National Geographics for pictures to put in a collage.  In one magazine from the 1960's, I found this exact picture--the one she copied the painting from.  I was dumbfounded.  I cut it out and taped it onto the back of the painting.  I felt like it was my Grandma Edith's way of saying hello.

As a teenager, I would love to go visit my grandma in Florida.  She went where many Jewish women went--to Clearwater, Florida.  She would go to spas there and just enjoy herself.  We would have a blast hanging out with all her women friends at the beach.

Grandma Edith taught me alot about being a strong woman, working hard and enjoying life.  She did it all--being a mother and a successful business woman --with grace.  Her spirit guides me still and I am immensely grateful.

Comments

[lindi keil baldwin]

keep on writing. you do an amazing job. it is so vivid, i feel like i am there....

[laurie]

Thank you Lindi for your wonderful support.