Birthday Party in Heaven

Today is January 28th. The fourth and final Thursday in January 2010. If you read the post "Every Seven Days In January" you will know that today would be my momma's birthday. I did my crying this morning and now have decided that she would not want to hear the blubbering. She would say to me..with her slight southern accent..."Go ahead, cry me a handful!" I can still hear those words from my childhood and have an all too vivid memory of Aaron (her grandson by affection) standing in front of her with his little face buried in the palm of her hand literally sobbing, to cry her a handful!

My momma was a FABULOUS woman and I miss her most on days like today. Her birthday, the anniversary of her death (January 30th 1992), and Mother's day seem to the worst for me.

I don't really know if they are having a party in heaven today, as I have yet to fully grasp how "heaven works". Another topic for another day. I would think that heaven is like a continuous party~never ending joy and celebration. If they did have a party I know it would be great. My dad is there with her and so is my brother, along with numerous other friends and relatives.

Something that I fondly recall about her is the funny words she used. She would say things like "daggumit" (which I think is the same as "dadburnit") which is most likely translated to doggoneit it my language! She also used the word "swig" which still today makes me laugh. Swig, what kind of word is that? Used in a sentence it would go like this..."Can I have a Swig of your coke"? I think the appropriate word would be drink but swig was one of those southern style words that she would often use. She was never sick without being tired. You know what I mean..."I am sick and tired of your fighting." could often be heard as my sister and I would fight over something trivial and "Bless you pea pickin heart" was another one. I am certain that my heart never picked peas but at least I was blessed. Truly blessed.

My momma grew up in the hills and hollars of Arkansas, where she learned to care for her younger siblings, while her mother worked in the cotton fields. She was a wonderful cook. She even used her cooking talents in the cafeteria of the elementary school that I attended. She could take the worst tasting, government issued peanut butter and make an amazing peanut butter sandwich! Having her in the same school building as me was a definite plus. I remember falling on the playground and not going to see the school nurse~I got to go see my mom. What 9 year old wouldn't love that? Back to the cooking.... I can remember coming home from school and complaining that there was nothing to eat, yet within 2 hours (and she never left the house) there would be a giant meal on the table. Her cooking talents were endless and the amazing thing is I never saw her measure anything. A "dab" of this and a "pinch" of that, there is that wonderful vocabulary again!

She always smelled great too, especially on Sundays! Sand and Sable was her perfume of choice. Ocassionally, I will be in the mall or grocery and someone will walk by me and I will catch the scent of their perfume and it reminds me of Sundays with Mom. And let me also mention the locket that she wore to church nearly every Sunday. I don't know where she obtained this locket but if I had to guess I would say Avon. A picture of Washington crossing the Deleware graced the front. Now let me say, I know exactly why she wore this locket and it had nothing to do with her being a history buff. It had everything to do with the fact that it was the perfect size to hold the gum wrappers from the gum that she would give Heather, Tennille and Aaron during church to keep them quiet. We always had to clean up the pew before we left church and the locket was the perfect way to not miss any wrappers! I have that locket and cherish the memories that it holds as well as the gum wrappers!

Mom loved her children. The 3 of us and Deb made 4. She loved her grandchildren even more. Deb's 3 kids came first and she loved them like they were her own. Then Joe's kids, Amy and Ryan then later Natilee. Kathy and I were pretty much blessed with babies at the same time. Kurt, then my Ashley, my Lena and then baby Caitlyn. She loved them all. I remember how happy I was the first time I watched her rock my Ashley. She cuddled her up and loved her like only a grandma (or "Nanny" in this case) could do. I only wish she could see all of them now. Maybe she can, maybe just today there is a special birthday window in heaven that she can look out of see what a wonder legacy she has here on earth. Oh, I hope that is true because she would be so proud of all of them. I hope there is a birthday party in heaven today. I hope it comes complete with cake, ice cream balloons and oh yes a special birthday window!