A Distance of 100 Years | Guest Post by Kim Hall

As the Titanic slipped beneath the waves that tragic night 100 years ago, on a continent far away, in a small town  in Vermont, my great-grandmother was laboring to bring her baby girl into the world.

Marion Wakfield and Mother

Understandably, the calamitous reports of the tremendous loss of life completely overshadowed the news of Marion Wakefield’s birth.

However, that in no way diminished my grandmother’s life or her influence over the next two generations.

This April 16, 2012, she would be 100, and I thought it appropriate to share this homage to my Grandmother.

It always seemed so far to drive to visit my grandparents, as they lived about two hours north of us.

There was always something else pressing, another to-do on the calendar.

And then, a little over three years ago, just before Christmas, after having to move into a nursing home/rehab center with my grandfather, my grandmother passed away.

The distance is too great now to visit.

She would have been 100 years old this month.

I am so very sorry I didn’t take more time to visit. She was so amazingly talented and delightfully interesting: she wrote, she crafted, she painted. As kids, we spent summers in Northern Vermont, taking turns a week at a time, just having a ball being just one or two siblings as opposed to the seven of us at home, being encouraged, treated and loved. So very loved.

I am so grateful for her inheritance of craftiness, of thrift, of sharing, of loving my family, and especially of writing.

I have no doubt that in Heaven she is still so very busy, sharing her talents with others.

Grampa and Gram on their 40th anniversary

Thank you Gram, love you lots, and a very happy birthday that transcends the distance from my heart to yours.

Thrift

Gram lived through the Depression and had Scottish blood. Need I say more? I see this trait in all of us, and our youngest has recently delighted and surprised us with her ability to turn an older garment into a fresh work of wonder. Without having ever been taught how to sew. I can hear Gram chuckling over it now.

Faith

I never realized what a true servant of Christ Gram was until I attended her memorial service. She worked at walking the talk, and I just wish she could see how my husband and I are walking that same path, learning about the joy to be found in our faith.

Button monograms and felt flowers © Alexis Helmrath

Creativity

My mom inherited Gram’s creative gene, even though she pooh-poohs her talents, and she encouraged creative pursuits in all seven of us kids. I often wonder how she kept her sanity through it all. She taught me to sew and to do so much else, for which I am eternally grateful. Thanks, Mom!

Craftiness

Gram could take most anything and make it bloom into something else. Mom once gave her a bolt of bright green wool, and Gram made ornaments from it (about 100 a year for her annual Christmas Cards) for several years in a row, crafting slippers, scarves, mittens, etc., as an amusing series. Our oldest daughter took that gift of craftiness and applied it to her wedding bouquet, which she created from felt and Gram’s button collection.

Writing

Gram wrote three family histories, composed sermons when she served as a lay minister for her church, and kept family camp scrapbooks, recording memories going back about 40 years.  I have inherited her gift, and for that I am eternally grateful. After finishing a post titled On being sugared off,  I emailed the link to my mom. I noted that I thought Gram would have gotten a real charge out of how I compared us to sap of the maple tree and the process of sugaring, since she was an avid fan of real Vermont maple syrup. I said that I could hear Gram laughing over the post, and would exclaim in her inimitable way, “Oh my land!”

My land, indeed. My home, my past, present and future tied so inextricably and woven so tightly to Gram and the amazing lady she was.

Questions for your consideration today: Is there someone you need to re-connect with? What can you do to preserve your story for future generations?

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Kim, who can be found at Too Darn Happy, empowers moms with information and resources to build stronger and more satisfying relationships in their lives.

Want more about the Titanic? Check out my new book: By the Light of the Silvery Moon! 

Amelia Gladstone’s hopes are tied up in the Titanic–hopes for a reunion with her sister and an introduction to an admirer. But when she offers a spare ticket to a down-and-out young man, her fate is about to change.

Quentin Walpole is stunned when a sweet lady secures his passage to America–and even more surprised to find his wealthy father and older brother on board the ship. Suddenly Amelia finds herself caught between the attentions of two men, but who should she entrust her heart to? As the fateful night arrives, will Amelia lose everything to the icy waters?