Ani and I have been enjoying Michigan for the last few weeks. One of the reasons we decided to come home early was to see my Grandma Jenny who has been ill for a number of years and was placed in Hospice mid-December. She passed away on New Years Day at age 95.
While it is sad to know she is no longer here, preparing for her funeral has strangely put me in a good mood because it requires conjuring up all the great old memories of the grandma I knew and loved. Grandma Jenny (Vincenza Maggiore) was a beauty with sparkling blue eyes and perfectly coiffed and colored hair. She was a woman who knew how to accessorize and I think of her whenever I see fitted leather gloves, butterfly pins, and beaded clutch purses.
While her fashion taste was impeccable, she had some hilarious food and drink preferences for someone who was a phenomenal cook in her day. My mouth waters at the thought of her cooked all-day tomato sauce and her delicious cookies but Grandma had a penchant for Kentucky Fried Chicken and Blackberry Manischewitz. She always had Double-Mint gum on hand to help with the inevitable indigestion that results from combining the Colonel's special with sugary wine. More than anything, these things bring a smile to my face.
Tomorrow is Grandma Jenny's funeral and I am grateful to be there with my freshly colored hair and butterfly pin where I will lift a glass of Manischewitz and toast a long life well-lived.
