An Angel Is Born

On Tuesday, September 7th my wonderful grandmother, AnnaLou Seely, passed away just a few days shy of her nine year battle with breast cancer. Grandma Seely was the matriarch of our family. We held countless family gatherings, birthday parties, baby showers, and bridal showers in her "bowling alley" of a basement. When my family would come to Utah for summer vacations and Christmases, we would always stay at grandma's house.

She always kept us well fed. One of my favorite memories was when my sisters and I were staying in the basement with my cousins and we all got hungry after staying up so late talking, so I was nominated to go upstairs and ask for something to eat. I don't remember how old I was but I remember I had on pink pajamas with a koala bear on them. I got up the stairs and in my sweetest voice asked if I could have something to eat. My aunt Debbie was there and chastised me for half a second about staying up so late, then asked me what I wanted to eat. As soon as my sisters and cousins heard the spoons rattling in the drawer, they immediately came the rest of the way up the stairs from their hiding spot to say that they were also hungry.

Something unique about my grandmother is her turquoise collection. She has lived all over the Southwest and has collected a large amount of turquoise jewelry over the years. One day when I was visiting with her, I was wearing a turquoise sweater. As soon as I walked in, Grandma told me that she had some earrings that would match my sweater. She immediately went into a bedroom and then gave me a pair of turquoise earrings. I wore them to her funeral.

I also had the privilege of living with her for part of my student teaching. While I was living with her I was able to hear her stories of growing up, see her wedding dress and help her around the house. I also got to wear more of her turquoise collection when I ran out of outfits at the end of the week and had to piece together a clean outfit of all black. The turquoise earrings, necklace, and bracelet really made a statement!

While I am sad to see her gone, I am relieved that she is no longer in pain. Even during her treatments, she wouldn't let the pain stop her! She continued to sew her blankets and burp cloths. I am so grateful that I was able to have her teach me how to stitch the burp cloths.

My grandparents were sealed in the Manti Temple, just like me and Tim. I'm glad that she was able to attend our sealing and that we could have that in common.

While Grandma is never going to be able to see my children grow up (or any other of her great-grandchildren), I know that she is spoiling them in heaven. Grandma Seely was an amazing woman who continually helped others and looked on the bright side of life. I love you and miss you!