When I was fifteen years old, my grandma gave me this lovely handmade bookmark. It travels with me always because it is in my Bible. I got the idea to make another one, but that did not work out very well. I am not at her skill level. So, I decided to make a different variant. It’s pretty easy and relaxing to make.
Grandma’s work is even more neat and finely made. I will keep learning, but for now, I have to be satisfied with this result.
In one of the moments I was working on this, I was remembering my grandma. We visited my grandparents often. Grandma would always sit in her chair and listen to our stories. She knew so much about us and gave us all personal attention. And, that was quite a job! We had to share her attention with more than 50 cousins. My grandparents had ten children, and they all have big families. On our car ride through the country to visit them, people would look at our full car, and we just put up ten fingers to make the counting a bit easier. When we arrived, my granddad was always making coffee in the kitchen. He rode his bike until he was over 85 just to go to the market to get the famous raw herring with unions. (Now, you know where my love for markets comes from.)
My granddad was always wearing black. It was kind of a custom for him. I felt so strong as a child in his arms! It was all so sturdy: faith, beliefs, customs, clothes, and character. I loved him so very much and was so proud of him. It still makes me happy. Most of all, our grandparents have been showing us to sing and pray. We all knew that they prayed for us every single day.
When we had to clean out their belongings, I got two items: One of them is this yellow bathtub. It fell apart this summer after more than 65 years of faithful service. I think the quality of this stuff was better at the time.
My granddad passed away a year after his wife, my grandmother, as if he fulfilled his promise to take care of her until death came to part them. And, when it did, he also was finished. He went to bed, and it took another year before he past away. He was just laying there, waiting. And, all his children and grandchildren would come and sit next to his bed and sing the old psalms. Jelle and I just started dating that same year.
And, we sang together.
Do you have a nice item or family memory to share?
Janneke