InsaneJournal

Current mood:

regretful

Requiem for my grandmother.
Requiem for Ada Mary Hodges (nee Muncaster). Born 28 May 1912. Died 7 November 2007.

She went away years ago
I'm not certain where to, though.
Maybe back to the days of her youth
The jobs here and there
The work canning fruit, doing maidservant chores
Maybe back to the journey from England
Herself and a sister only two years her senior
Coming to a land they know only from letters
At the suggestion of a brother who had been working
For most of their lives.
Maybe she even returned to those early years
Part of a large family in the English Midlands
Ten siblings, no mother, father down the mines
Nick and Hannah holding the family together.

She laughed a lot, and sang
She always seemed happy, a bright breeze of joy
She never seemed ashamed of who she was.

I learned a lot from her.
Learned how to dress a shape like mine
Learned how to make tea
Learned why I should let my toast cool before buttering it
- Even if I never did
Learned if I could still get my thumbs on the plate, there was room for more
Learned how to cook for an army
And how to cater by counting in troll
- One, Two, Many, Lots
Maybe I learned these last two a little too well
I learned how to enjoy the beach
Learned how to make fried bread
How to catch fish, bait a hook, and how to scale and fillet the fish we caught.

Now she's moved on,
And we're left behind.
But the memory remains, and she lives still
In our hearts, in our memories
Of a woman who shared her happiness with all her family
Of a woman who lived through so many changes
Of a woman who was brave enough as a girl
To take a step into the unknown
And travel halfway around the world
To find her fortune.

She found it, and loved it.
May we all be so fortunate.

Written 08 NOV 2007