(This article was originally written in April, 2018.)
Last month, we celebrated my Papa’s 86th year of life. My grandmother would have celebrated her 85th year, had she still been with us. This is a short article I wrote back in 2014, shortly after she’d gone to be with Jesus. I hope it can bring a smile to someone’s face who’s known the pain of loss.
I’m sitting here at my Grandma Fallon’s grave in Georgia National Cemetery, because my Papa (who is living) earned the role of Lieutenant Colonel in the Airforce. And I have bitter sweet feelings. I have tears in my eyes because seeing her grave stone brings a sense of reality back to me… I really won’t be seeing her again this side of Heaven. That’s hard. It’s hard to accept that.
But I also have a peace and a smile. I know my Grandma knows Jesus and that she is now with him face to face in an eternal peace. She is happy. Her dreams are fulfilled. And I got the privilege of seeing her in peace and saying my goodbyes before she passed on. For that I am grateful.
My Grandma taught me to laugh and how laughter is medicine for the soul. She also taught me I can do and be whatever I want to be, and I am sufficient in and of myself, so long as I walk with God. She taught me much more. But these are the two legacy lessons that were most passed onto me.
Like me, Grandma loved children and was a child at heart. She loved to cut up and have fun. She made fun. She was fun. In fact, I’m sure she still is fun in Heaven.
I brought three single stemmed roses to place at Grandma’s grave. One is red. She loved red roses, and a dozen red roses was the last gift I gave my Grandma. My Uncle Jim even took me to a local grocery store nearby the hospital when we knew it may be our last chance to give Grandma flowers. The second rose is a sparkly purple one. This represents her place of honor and royalty in Heaven…and how she always added sparkle to everyone’s life. The third rose is orange. The orange represents her sunny and cheerful disposition…along with the fall season we’ve just now entered.
I miss and love my Grandma Fallon. But she lives on in my heart and in the hearts of everybody else who loves and misses her. She is in peace, though. And she is happy. So I rest my soul in this belief. I am grateful for the hope of my salvation, King Jesus.
