Gardening with Grammy

I’ve written a few times before about how amazing grandmothers are. They are like mythical perfect people who live to just make us happy and teach us so much, and have so much fun along the way. When I was younger, my maternal grandmother and grandfather had a small summer place somewhere in Wisconsin about three hours outside of Milwaukee. Everyone called it “Up North.” I have no real clue of where this place is on a map, but I knew going “Up North” meant having a fun time outdoors, living in the country, but in a place nowhere near the south. Maybe it was in Adams County, WI, but hmmm a city or town name? I have no clue. Anyways, I have so many fond memories of being “Up North” with my grandparents. I have very few memories of my mother being there, I guess that was a good break for her, which I TOTALLY understand was the point now lol.

My granny loved to garden, and she loved to pick weeds, with her bare hands, without the fancy spray treatments and weed wackers we have now. She taught me how to take care of a garden before I knew what a garden was, just knowing how to pick out the bad stuff so it wouldn’t harm the good flowers. This week in North Carolina while visiting my mom, I’m getting a bit of a break that my mom used to feel. The three of us are enjoying time together, but my mom, or grammy, and my daughter, Rae, have their own routine each day as well, which gives me a break to read, write or just stare into space with a glass of wine. It is heaven. And while I’m out trying to catch up on exercise, they start their day by watering the plants and flowers around the house.

Gardening is a new hobby my mother has taken up as a sweet way to remember and feel connected to her mother, my granny, the original gardener. As I was headed down the driveway to start a jog, I couldn’t help but to overhear the flower-watering conversation Rae and her grammy were having about the colors of the flowers and what my mom thought about their progress even in this summer heat. Rae listened but really just wanted to throw the water on the plants. She loves splashing water any way she can these days. Years from now, I hope this bond will continue to grow, and she will feel and remember the love, joy and fun that comes from learning the simplest things from your grandmother, just as I do.