Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Takin' It Back Tuesdays { My Nana }

Today is my {first} "Takin' it Back Tuesday!" Everyone likes to reminisce and what a better way then to bring it back every Tuesday with memories. And believe me, I remember everything, so I have a lot....

First person of topic is my nana. Where to start? My nana died of liver failure when I was ten years old. She was only 47 I think ( or close to it ) so she was young. Back then, when you are my age - anyone with gray hair and you call "nana" is old, but in fact looking back, she was very young and I appreciate her life even more now that I am an adult, and I even sympathize with my mother more now knowing that she lost her mom at such an early time in her life. I am twenty nine years old and I cannot even imagine losing my mother and she just turned 47.

From what my mom tells me about my nana Jane, she was a helper of many things. She always took in stray cats, even if she couldnt feed them. She took in people that needed a roof to sleep under, or a meal to eat - she would provide them with. She had many shitty relationships and my mother and her siblings grew up pretty poor, but they survived and they took care of one another when my nana couldnt take care of them herself. My whole entire family on that side are very "down to earth" and appreciate the little things in life. I think it's because they didnt have much with my nana so they learned to appreciate what they did have.

Memories of me and my nana go back to hanging flowers to dry in her barn. She owed a 3 bedroom house in a nicer part of town where I grew up in Massachusetts. It was probably a 5 acre land with a barn, basketball court, inground swimming pool, and large back deck. It was a place that the entire family got together for holidays  and we all enjoyed eachothers companies. I remember my nana babysitting me as a young child, and some other boys from the neighborhood. The backyard was so big and back then, trees seemed so large that it was like a forest to us kids. We would run around out there all day making pretend of all sorts of strange things! My  nana used to garden. She gardened a whole bunch. She had many, many, rose bushes. One of which was named Felicite, it was yellow and just beautiful. She found my name in a rose catalog and that is why my mom ultimately named me that by the way! My nana and I would scavenge through her yard and all the way back through all them acres, picking blue berries, and all sorts of flowers. We would hang them upside down in the barn to dry out for a few days and then craft them on hand made wreaths.

Because my nana had so many gardens, they attracted alot of butterflies. One of which always came back, or so she made me believe that it did. Back then I did not know that a butterflies life was short, so every year when "Crystal" the yellow monarch butterfly showed up the first week of spring I would be so excited that she had come back to see us! And every summer I looked forward to seeing her again. Through out my life, probably because of those fond memories do I love butterflies. I ofcourse, have a few tattoos of them and whenever I see a monarch butterfly now I like to think that its my nana visiting me, and not Crystal anymore.

After my nana died she left the house to my mom. Me, mom, my little brother, and my stepfather moved in right away. My aunt Nissa was only 18 at the time so she stayed there until she left for college. I remember the house being very old, kind of dusty, not in the best shape. My mom and her husband spent alot of time and money to fix that house up for all of us. We continued to have family gatherings there for many years, until my parents divorced (thats a whole nother story) And although as an adult now who no longer lives there, or has that house in our family, I will always look back and love it there. Though I did have alot of strange, unexplainable, instances happen. Paranormal I should say, which maybe Ill touch up on in another post.... I would love to live there again, or just pop in to reminisce & see what is the same or what has changed.

It is sad that I dont have many memories about my nana, other than what Ive said above. I tried to find a more recent picture of her just before she past and my mom must have them hiding somewhere in her house, because we have none online. Here is what I do have.....



{ Here is my nana when she was just a little girl }


{ My nana as she was a little older, and my mom as a child }


{ My mom when she was so young, holding me in my nana's kitchen }



{ This is me, my aunt, and 2 cousins }
| My favorite part of this picture is that its at my nana's house |
{ such a fond childhood memory place }


{ My mom & me visiting my nana's grave a few years ago }


{ Im pretty sure my nana was buried with her father & his wife }


{ We recently passed my nana's 19th anniversary of her passing }


Even though I never got to spend a lot of quality time with my nana, because I was so young - atleast I had her for 10 years of my life and still remember the small things about her. I really wish that she  had been there for all of us to see us grow up, and to be along side of my mother. But we cant change the past, we can only accept it and move on. I am greatful for the person my mom has become, maybe because of my grandmother- and I will always love her and hope that she is looking down on us <3

EDIT (8/11): After one of my aunts read what I had wrote here from my link on facebook, she tagged me in these pictures. Thank you Eileen - I am very greatful <3


{ Left- my nana and my uncle Jimmy. Right- my aunt Nissa and my nana }


{ My nana and my uncle Jimmy }


{ My nana is in the silk black shirt along side of my aunt, uncle, and a few friends }

3 comments:

  1. Jim has a few pictures of her not long before she passed away (age 52... still VERY young) that I'll dig out, scan, and send to you. I wish that I had gotten to meet her... she and I had a lot in common from everything your uncle tells me and I think we would have gotten along really well. She had a hard life and I believe she loved her family fiercely.

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  2. Lovely post - I think it's great to take a moment and reflect on good memories. I don't get to see my grandmother that often (I live in another country so every 1.5-2 years if I'm lucky) so each time I see her I treasure each moment.

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  3. This book is fantastic! It is divided into 3 categories, Self, Science, and Sweat.In Self, she teaches you how to build a support groups and revamp your negative self image and filter out those individuals in your life that are harmful to your health. She also provides a test to find out what type of 'oxidizer' (the way you burn nutrients) you are which helps you decide your nutrition plan.

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