“A Good Day to Die”

December 31, 2010 

 

In the BBC television series “Robin Hood”, which began in 2006, Little John frequently used the phrase “a good day to die”.  After spending a couple of high quality moments with my Grandmother over the past few months, that phrase has taken on a special meaning to me.

 

Grandma Anne on her wedding day!Grandma Anne at her 90th birthday celebration!

 

This morning, December 31, 2010, Anne, the last of my four grandparents, concluded the final chapter of her life on Earth.  As I reflect back on the life of Grandma Anne, I am truly amazed by the impact one woman can have on our world.  What’s even more amazing is that I can call myself her grandson!

 

Grandma Anne gave life to two wonderful daughters who gave life to ten surviving grandchildren who gave life to twenty-seven great-grandchildren.  Among those descendants, we find high school valedictorians, published authors, farmers, plumbers, journalists, Navy pilots, FBI Agents, genetic researchers, coaches of our youth, and nurses.  The common thread found among her daughters and grandchildren is that each chose a life of service to others.  If I make it to 90 years of age, I can only hope that I will leave behind a similar legacy.  Clearly, Grandma Anne has left us some very large footsteps to follow!

 

In addition to the family she leaves behind, Grandma Anne also deserves credit for the Church she helped to build, St. Lukes of Mechanicville.  She spent her life in devotion to the Church that was housed on Mechanicville’s Main Street.  After many decades of life-altering experiences in that Church on Main Street, the gorgeous structure was deemed unsafe for continued use.  Grandma Anne did not sit by to see the congregation she loved left homeless.  She instead worked to find a new home for the Church and lived to see the new St. Lukes Church erected right in the very neighborhood she shared with a number of her descendants.

 

If a person’s wealth is to be measured by the legacy the person leaves behind, then Grandma Anne leaves this world as one of the wealthiest people I will have ever known.

 

I can’t talk about the life of Grandma Anne without mentioning the special circumstances that connected her and my mother to me.  When Grandma Anne was 22 years of age, she gave birth to my mother.  When my mother was 22 years of age, she gave birth to me.  When I turned 22, my mother turned 44 and Grandma Anne turned 66.  When I turned 44, my mother turned 66 and Grandma Anne turned 88.  Mathematics has always played a huge role in my life and I find that highly unusual mathematical connection which spanned three generations to be most fascinating.

 

I also recall a special bond between Grandma Anne and I that was created not long after Grandpa Harry's life came to an unexpected conclusion in 1971.  I was asked to be Grandma Anne’s partner for square dancing at St. Lukes Church.  I was too young then to understand the significance of my role as her partner in the absence of my Grandfather, but I certainly have a tremendous appreciation for that now!

 

On October 3, 2010, Grandma Anne celebrated her 90th birthday with her two daughters and ten grandchildren, many of whom came together from five different states.  Such a gathering of all of the members of both of those generations of her descendants had not occurred in many, many years.  Again on December 26, 2010, Grandma Anne was surrounded by the love of her family, both near and afar, for what would turn out to be her final Christmas on Earth.

 

Many would argue that no day is “a good day to die”.  Since we all have to die someday, however, I choose to argue that Grandma Anne found a very good day to die.

Grandma Anne on her wedding day!