My Grandmother’s headstone reads, “She Loved Life”.  I never got the chance to ask her why she wanted that very statement on her headstone.  She died with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s in the Fall of 2003.

But as I reflect on the many memories of time I spent with her and my Grandfather on their Nebraska ranch, I think I may understand.

My Grandmother grew up in a sod house on the same ranch, in the shadow of a 300-foot sandstone bluff that was named, “Sea Lion Rock”.  My Grandmother lived a modest life on those Great Plains, with her parents and four siblings.  She knew the effort it took to work the ground and raise the stock.  It was not simple to get the water and get the chicken for supper.  She walked or rode a horse to school.  Shared clothes and shoes with her siblings.  There was wind and rarely a tree to block the intense Nebraska summer sun.  But she must have loved that land, because she only lived away from it for a few short years while my Grandfather advanced in his work as an educator.

As I ponder her life, I see clearly that watching her life was a gift to me and to the future of my family. Her life showed me what it looked like to live well, to live modestly, and to live simply.  And what it looked like to be a neighbor, a community contributor, a volunteer, and a leader.  She wrote three family history books…before there were computers.  She loved her family and she gave us such a rich heritage.

When I stand and look at her headstone, I can watch the sun rise over Chimney Rock.  No doubt there were days when life was no fun and really hard, but she kept herself.  She was a good woman.

So this is what Valentine’s Day means to me; the example of a woman who lived well and lived steady and loved the life she lived.  

Thank you, Gram.

Your Granddaughter,

Jill

©Jill Couch