Tuesday

Most of America will be singing the praises of democracy today and, yes, I am thankful I can vote. In fact, I just returned from voting. If you're reading this on Tuesday, November 7th, then please go vote today. In recent years, we all learned the importance of each person's vote, but that's not the focus of my gratitude today.

Today, I'm thankful that my grandmother, Mildred Evans Christmas, was an active and influential part of my life for over 30 years. She was an amazing woman who gave herself fully to her family and her Lord. She set an example for faithfulness to marriage that still inspires me. Her love for the Lord and for his people was obvious to everyone who knew her.

She loved to send cards and never forgot anyone's birthday or anniversary. She was very observant and had a great memory and this often showed in the cards she chose to send people. She knew that dark purple irises were my favorite flower and that we used them extensively in our wedding. Every year, she found an anniversary card for me and Keith that had purple irises on it.

She loved to take her grandchildren shopping for clothes and shoes and it was very common for me, my sister Sheila, our cousins Laura and Carolyn, and our moms to all have the same shirt, skirt, or jacket. She was a great sale shopper and we used to joke about her going into department stores and saying, "I'll take 7 of those -- 3 size 10's, 2 twelves , and 2 size 8's." More than once we would show up for family functions wearing the same thing without planning to. Her amazing memory for color also meant that I would get birthday presents in March that matched the skirt I'd bought with her the summer before.

Grandmother was one of the smartest, strongest women I've ever known. She never attended college, but she read the newspaper every day and watched the news regularly. She loved to read and loved classical music. She was the faith and culture foundation for our family for many years.

In January of 2003 she finally got to meet her Lord. I still miss her. The waves of grief have subsided, but there are still many memories that bring tears. I'm so thankful for her legacy of faith, learning, and service. She was more of an influence on me than she ever realized.

Thank you God, for my Grandmother.