If you've got the money, honey, I've got the time

The title of this post is a line from a song my grandma would always sing. It goes on to say "...we'll go honky-tonkin' and have a good time." My Grannie wouldn't just sing this, she would belt it.

She passed away three days ago. She had battled with dementia for years -- so many that I can't remember when it started. My mom wrote an email to friends and family relaying the news and it was worded more eloquently then I could ever come up with:

Often we think of death as a time of sadness but when dementia is involved it can not be characterized as such. Ana Luisa has finally reunited with her beloved Sig and all the Anglades and Delannoys who have gone before. Momma breathed her last Friday, September 17th, at 5:30 pm. Her spirit is finally free of a body and brain that were no longer functioning. It was a peaceful ending, long overdue. She donated her body to science so there will be no funeral but in November(date as yet to be decided) we three daughters will celebrate her life in a memorial dinner [. . .] Let me repeat that it is a relief and blessing that the husk that was left is gone. We have missed and will miss her dearly but she has not been with us for quite a while. Her spirit is free now and at peace. Our loss is great but the memories are what put a smile on our face and a joy in our heart.

The grandmother of the last few years was not the same grandmother that I remember. When I think of my Grannie, I remember being little and waiting for her to arrive at the airport (she lived in Louisiana.) My family and I would stand at the end of the gate's ramp (this was when you could go to the gate) and wait for her to come off of the plane. She'd usually be one of the last off the plane but when she started coming down the ramp, you couldn't miss her. She fancied wearing the loudest of colors, especially hot pink. She wore hot pink lipstick at all times. It was called "Cherries in the Snow". She loved the name of it so would mention it frequently. I would be so excited to see her when she arrived -- it was like a kid of my age was coming that I could play with.

She was fond of using southern phrases. She taught me "Well, cut my legs and call me shorty" (a form of "Can you believe that?".) Going to the bathroom was always "draining the canary." When my mom would drive us around, my grandma would say "Annie, you're close enough to that bicyclist you could take his socks off while leaving his shoes on." My brother and I taught her "Put the pedal to the metal", and she would yell out "Annie, put the pedal to metal!"

Lastly, her philosophy in life was to have a sense of humor, no matter what. She had told me a sense of humor was one of the most important things in life. To this day, when I'm all upset about something, I think of that and try to look at the funny side.

Its been difficult to be on the road while this is going on back home. The hardest part of this is that I can't be home to support my mom. I told her this and she told me that she couldn't have thought of a better place for me to be. She said she's living vicariously through me and that she's been praying that my Grannie has now joined me on my trip here in the West. I hope so, too, although I also hope my grandma has a sense of direction because she's my go-to person next time I'm lost.

Thanks for letting me take a moment to remember her.