:-( With every passing second, every passing minute, ...

With every passing second, every passing minute, every passing hour, every passing day, every passing week, every passing month, every passing year, we are that much closer to Death. We all age. As I get older, my children get older. As I get older, my elders get older. The one sure constant in Life is Death.

My paternal grandmother passed away this morning 1AM. She was 92. Life did not cheat her. My grandfather passed away when my father was about 10 or so. She went on to raise my father and my 3 uncles and also my 2 aunts by herself. As you can imagine, life was not easy for her. She was energetic, so full of life. She had to be. She was frugal by necessity raising 6 kids by herself. She had only 2 outfits, wore 1 for the day, and when the day was over, washed it and let it dry. She would wear her 2nd outfit the next day. And the cycle repeats ad infinitum. Old-school. She even ran a storefront, able to parlay what little profits she had to buy real estate. She provided for her family and if I do say so myself, was pretty successful given the hardships that Life threw her way. She didn't care what others thought or said of her, she knew what she had to do to survive, in order to raise her family. I am reminded of the Frank Sinatra song, "My Way":

And now, the end is near;
And so I face the final curtain.
My friend, I'll say it clear,
Ill state my case, of which I'm certain.

I've lived a life that's full.
I've traveled each and every highway;
And more, much more than this,
I did it my way.

Regrets, I've had a few;
But then again, too few to mention.
I did what I had to do
And saw it through without exemption.

I planned each charted course;
Each careful step along the byway,
But more, much more than this,
I did it my way.

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew
When I bit off more than I could chew.
But through it all, when there was doubt,
I ate it up and spit it out.
I faced it all and I stood tall;
And did it my way.

I've loved, I've laughed and cried.
I've had my fill; my share of losing.
And now, as tears subside,
I find it all so amusing.

To think I did all that;
And may I say - not in a shy way,
No, oh no not me,
I did it my way.

For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself, then he has naught.
To say the things he truly feels;
And not the words of one who kneels.
The record shows I took the blows -
And did it my way!

As she got older, I made it a point to take our family summer vacations and fly up to see her. We got to see her 3x in the past 7 years. We last saw her this summer of 2008. I am so glad my kids got to spend time with their great-grandmother and she had chances to spend time with my children.



Granny, you will be missed, may you rest in peace.