Circa 1963...

A simpler time...needless to say. The neighbors' sheets are hanging on the clothesline in the background...this picture was taken in Houston, in the Sharpview neighborhood....I was not yet 3 years old. My family lived there for a short time before moving to the first house that my parents ever purchased...a 3/2/2 Fox & Jacobs home in Sharpstown...in terms of kids in the neighborhood and stay-at-home Moms...I grew up in The Wonder Years.

I don't think I'm revealing my identity and location by sharing this picture of my Grandmother pushing me on the swingset in 1963. Interesting things about my Grandmother...ALWAYS wore a dress, but by golly, if you look closely, you'll see that she's wearing houseslippers....also a staple of her daily dress. My Grandmother was enormously gifted in math and science, and would probably have been a physician had she been born in my generation. As a child, she would show me the anatomical drawings she did in her high school science classes, and I found it mesmerizing. She worked in the garden with a shotgun at her side, and thought nothing of shooting rattlesnakes when they approached...She was tireless in playing educational games with me, and taught me more things than I could ever remember or count. She was absolutely fearless in my mind, and my hero. When she passed away unexpectedly in 1992, she had already taken care of every detail of her funeral arrangements in advance...she planned for e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. Nothing ever seemed to catch her by surprise, and she was undaunted in the face of whatever life presented her...she was, in a word, amazing.

Other than my Mom, there is no one on the planet who adored me more than my Grandmother. She was my biggest fan, and not the least bit shy about saying so. I loved her very much, and still miss her. I wish she were here today to help me sort through life...she would know what to tell me...she would have answers for all my questions. Even if she didn't have an answer, just her presence alone would be a great comfort. What a gift she was...I was incredibly lucky to be her grandaughter.